Disk Mania
by RockSunner
Summary: This is the untold story of the Planispheric Disk and all the mystery-solving groups that have tried to unlock its secrets. Spoilers up to the end of SDMI.
1. Sitting Room, El Aguirre

This is the untold story of the Planispheric Disk and all the mystery-solving groups that have tried to unlock its secrets. All the characters belong to Warner Brothers, not me. Spoilers up to the end of SDMI.

**Disk Mania**

"Wake up, Fernando El Aguirre," said a breathy voice.

El Aguirre opened his eyes in a room with red curtains. The floor was tiled with black and white stripes. Strange lanterns on poles provided dim illumination.

He turned completely around. He could not see who had spoken with him. His men were there in a cluster, but motionless as statues. He called to them but nothing seemed to rouse them.

"Do not worry about them for now. Come down the hallway into the main room and I will speak with you," said the voice which had woken him.

El Aguirre walked down a red-curtained hall and faced the being who had spoken to him, a huge snake-like being covered in bright feathers.

"A dragon!" he shouted in surprise. He tried to draw his sword but found that it would not move from its scabbard. It seemed to be frozen in time like his men.

"Some call me Quetzalcoatl, but I go by the name Kukulcan among the Mayans. The name means feathered serpent."

A strange calm radiated from the being, but El Aguirre didn't trust it.

"I've heard of you, serpent. A demon they worship," he said.

"I am no demon but an Anunnaki, a being from another dimension who crossed here long ago when the planets were aligned in a way that weakened the barriers between our worlds," said Kukulcan.

"Am I in hell?" asked El Aguirre.

"You are not. Perhaps you should be, for your crimes. You are on your way to being the worst of the conquistadors, worse than Cortés with the Aztecs or Pizarro with the Incas," said Kukulcan.

"I know I've done wrong. In my mind still hear the screams of the people I've killed. I don't know why I became so wicked. Now it's too late," said El Aguirre.

Kukulcan said "It is not entirely your fault. You were exploited by an evil Anunnaki and part of your personality was trapped here, in this small space between time and dimensions, a sitting room, one might call it."

"A room? I am not dead?" asked El Aguirre.

"No. The worst part of your soul still controls your living body, and it is still committing heinous crimes against humanity," said Kukulcan.

"No!" El Aguirre said. "I want him to stop,"

"You can control him with my help," said Kukulcan.

"If this isn't hell, why does this place look like this? It looks like it was decorated by demons," said El Aguirre.

"This pocket dimension once belonged to evil spirits of your Earth who feed on the suffering of others. They called it their Black Lodge and decorated it to suit themselves. The evil Anunnaki has taken it over for his own purposes. He traps here the best parts of those who get caught up with him," said Kukulcan.

"Why?" asked El Aguirre.

"I believe his intention with you and your men is to thoroughly corrupt and demoralize you, for his own amusement, until he can gather a new group of people to release him from his crystal sarcophagus to destroy the Earth and beyond," said Kukulcan.

"He wants to destroy the Earth? How can this be stopped?" asked El Aguirre.

"We Anunnaki bound the evil one into the sarcophagus long ago, but he has managed to influence and corrupt the minds of men even so. He must be sealed away in a deeper prison," said Kukulcan.

"What can I do from here? Will you send me back?" asked El Aguirre.

"No, I cannot do that, but your other half comes here in dreams, and with my help you can influence him and communicate what he needs to do. On the ship there is a planispheric disk, is there not?" asked Kukulcan.

"Yes. I use it for navigation and to record locations. It was made by alchemy and it is supposed to have mystical powers," said El Aguirre.

"What you call alchemy is a science of the Anunnaki that we taught to humanity. This disk does have power, and it will have much more when it is charged from sarcophagus of the evil one," said Kukulcan.

"Charged? What does that mean?" asked El Aguirre.

"You must place the disk on top of the sarcophagus for one hour and it will absorb alchemical power. That may also create a link between the disk and the evil one, but it is a risk we will have to take," said Kukulcan.

"What then? Where can the cursed sarcophagus be kept safely?" asked El Aguirre.

"There is a cove on the coast with deep caves beneath it. There the barriers to the elemental dimensions are weak and we can create portals most easily."

"I know nothing of these portals."

"I will show you. You will need four items of personal property associated with the elements of alchemy: air, earth, water, and fire. With them as keys we can lock the evil one behind four elemental doors."

"Then he will be harmless?" asked El Aguirre.

"He will still have some influence over the minds of people, but it will be much harder for them to get to him to free him, especially once you have broken the disk into pieces and scattered them, and done the same to the four keys. I can also show you how to create trapped places to hold the pieces, so only the most clever and fearless can get them," said Kukulcan.

"This seems very complicated. He cannot be destroyed instead of just locked away?" asked El Aguirre.

"He could have been destroyed by the group of Mayans you and your men shot and killed when you stole the sarcophagus. Come, I will show you."

Kukulcan led the way through a red-curtained doorway into bright jungle sunlight.

"You've set me free!" said El Aguirre, surprised and not entirely pleased.

"This is a captured moment of time, not an exit," said Kukulcan. "I have set spells to capture significant moments of time for the guidance of potential future heroes who will come here in dreams."

"What is in this moment, then?" El Aguirre shielded his eyes from the glow. "It's too bright! It almost burns me."

"Look up there, at the top of the pyramid. That temple is the tomb of the Hunters of Secrets. It is their purity which is reacting with the guilt in your heart which burns you. In this dream world thoughts have power to hurt."

"Who were the Hunters of Secrets?" asked El Aguirre.

"They were a group of friends who tried to uncover secrets and mysteries, pulled together by the evil entity to free itself. Their friendship and purity proved stronger and they intended to destroy it instead, until you killed them."

"The evil entity brought them together? Why would it do that?"

"The design of the sarcophagus is such that it takes a member of a group with five elements to open it. Come and see them yourself."

Reluctantly the conquistador walked up the temple side, shielding his eyes.

The feathered serpent indicated them one at a time.

"Bahlam, warrior and creator of traps that lift the captive up in the air. Bold, rushing to take the lead. He is the element of air.

"Ixchel, full of knowledge. Solid and practical. She is the element of earth.

"Acaat, tending to run away. Babbling and always hungry. He is the element of water.

"Akna, warm and beautiful but tending to have a hot temper. She is the element of fire.

"The Jaguar, with a name that in the Mayan language means 'Spot'. A talking descendant of the Anunnaki and the heart of the group

"The evil entity knows that only such a group can free him. He will no doubt try to create other such groups, but we will have to hope a new band of heroes will arise, because such a group, created by his power, is also the only thing that can destroy him," said Kukulcan.

"What will happen then?" asked El Aguirre.

"Once that happens, all the evil he has ever done will be undone, and you will be free of this place. Until then you and your men will remain, however long it takes."

"So this is a place of punishment as I thought. Take me back to the dark rooms, where I belong," said El Aguirre.

Kukulcan led the way back. "This is a place of punishment only if you make it so. This is a place of dreams, and they need not all be nightmares."

"What do you mean?" asked El Aguirre.

"Dreams are limited only by your imagination. You can learn to assume new forms here. I advise you to try to make a strong, threatening form in case the former owners of the Black Lodge try to take it back once the evil entity is locked behind dimensional doors. You will be able to guard yourself, your men, and any other unfortunate souls who fall under his influence and lose their good sides here."

El Aguirre thought to himself, "I know how I'll use the power to take a monstrous form. I'll help you lock up your monster, but I don't deserve to be set free, and neither do my men. I'll do anything in my power to keep the entity from being destroyed."

The two went back into the main room to continue their plans.


	2. Ensenada Cristal, 1630, El Aguirre

**Ensenada Cristal, 1630**

The Spanish galleon floated on the gentle waves of the sheltered cove. The day was bright, but the mood of the men was dark. They kept glancing towards an object lashed to the mast, now shrouded in yards of sailcloth. It was hard enough to resist the impulses sent out by the evil sarcophagus without looking it in the eyes.

Fernando El Aguirre said, "We have arrived. We will call this place Ensenada Cristal for the cursed crystal treasure we bring here."

Arturo Rodrigez, his second in command, asked, "How long will this take, Captain?"

"It will take months," said El Aguirre. "We will establish a garrison here and recruit local labor. There is much to do. I want not only to unload the cursed thing itself, but all the ill-gotten treasure tainted by it."

* * *

It did take months of trekking back and forth with loads of gold, weapons, and bejeweled treasures, over the bridges of the air dimension, the rocky gorges of the earth dimension, the hollow wooden tube they built to cross the barrier of the water dimension, and the treacherous paths through the lava pits of the fire dimension.

Finally they placed the sarcophagus on the bed of treasure and ran back to the portal.

"With this flint, the first key, I seal the entity behind the fire portal," declared El Aguirre, placing the small stone in the lock.

"No! You must not lock it away. I must have it!" shouted a man behind him. Three men rushed at El Aguirre. With expert battle reflexes he drew his sword and ran the lead man through. Rodriguez and Lieutenant Velázquez took care of the other two.

"We have to keep our minds on guard at all times," El Aguirre warned the others. "It will try to take us back."

They climbed through the ladder rungs set in the wooden tube that passed through the water, where up flipped to down. They untethered the ship's boat they had brought and broke up the tube, letting the pieces drift away on the endless ocean.

Using the Planispheric Disk they navigated the boat to the only land and pushed the boat up the cliff to the entry to the rock dimension. A prepared alchemical spell pulled up a wall of water and the boat was left as the only door to the water dimension. El Aguirre dipped his own helmet into the water to lock that door.

They crossed the earth dimension without incident. At the far end El Aguirre unleashed the alchemical spell which would bring to life a rock golem to defend the earth realm from any intruders, and they swiftly withdraw before it activated. A Mayan bowl full of earth was removed from a balance beam to swing shut and lock this door.

They crossed the bridges of the air dimension for the last time, and El Aguirre pulled down the lever to seal this door, and removed the piece of sailcloth that blocked the mouth of the face on the door. If the door was opened again and the cloth was not in place, a ferocious wind would tear apart any who stood before it.

The stress level continued high as they passed through the maze of caves. Finally they were outside in the sun again, drawing in deep breaths of fresh air.

"Now that the demon is buried, we must scatter the keys to his prison," said El Aguirre. "The next step was shown me in a dream. We must use the power of the Planispheric Disk to navigate through time itself. We must be free to move throughout the world, not be recognized as deserters from the Spanish army. If we go forward 130 years, my dreams tell me that will be optimal. Nobody alive will know us, and the portals will have stabilized."

He indicated himself, Rodriguez, Velázquez, Aguilar, Narváez, and Almagro, his most trusted men.

"We six will each take one piece, and each pick a hiding place. I know each of you have also received guidance in your dreams of the places to go and the traps to set there."

They set out to sea again. When the Planispheric disk was placed on the Captain's table, surrounded by the four keys at the four points of the compass, the pieces lifted up and realigned themselves, and a light shone out onto the wall, projecting their next coordinates. Following its directions, they sailed through a glowing ring on the sea just big enough for the ship to pass through, and there was an abrupt change in the sky from day to night.

The Captain measured the stars with his astrolabe and nodded. "We have done it. By my calculations we are now in the year 1760."


	3. Ensenada Cristal, 1760, Fraternitas

**Ensenada Cristal, 1760**

The ship landed again in the harbor they had last visited over a century ago. Time had erased nearly all traces of the old garrison but there were signs of new occupancy. Missions were now active on this coast. Spain had given up on finding more empires rich in gold; this part of the New World was to be conquered for souls.

Captain El Aguirre handed out the pieces of the Disk. "The fate of the world is in our hands, men. If we dared to hope for God's favor, I would say go with God. As it is... do your best."

El Aguirre watched them go, then led away his few remaining men to arrange a most difficult feat. They would recruit labor and haul the ship up into the mountains. There it could be filled with the strange mechanical traps the Anunnaki had shown him how to make. It would be a monumental work and one from which he did not intend to return. The piece, and the helmet he wore which was the second key, would be safe there forever.

* * *

Aguilar took his piece with the goal of getting as far away as possible as fast as possible. He went south down the coast to find passage on a ship. He had been given sufficient money for a long voyage. He also carried the piece of sailcloth that was the fourth key.

That night a destination came to him in a dream: a wise woman known to the Anunnaki on the other side of the world. She could protect the piece because she had access to some of their advanced technology, including a one-person flying vehicle that could hold the rider in a cup and move swiftly through the sky, steered with a control rod. Even her house could run on bird legs powered by alchemy.

"So far away from here she will be out of reach of corruption by the evil one," thought Aguilar. "If not, she might become a fearsome witch. But no, that I cannot believe. Who could fear a woman with a silly name like Baba Yaga?"

* * *

Velázquez had an easier assignment, a trapped place prepared by native workers during the time that the sarcophagus mission was under way, 130 years ago. They had tunneled a channel for ocean water to fill a side cave. On the other side they built a brick facade with weak points that just contained the pressure, which could be released by a simple mechanical trigger.

They also put spears into niches carved in the walls, each on a spring to shoot them out at anyone who triggered the main trap. If the water didn't drown them, the poison on the tips of the spears would finish them.

The next step had been to make a hill of bones, which could conceal an array of more poisoned spears that would thrust out by springs when a trip-wire was touched. There were plenty of bones for the pile. In their days of madness the conquistadors had collected them in the hold of their ship, mixed in with the treasure. When the workers were finished there were more bones to add to the pile – the Spaniards couldn't risk them talking, and what were a few more lives compared to the fate of the world?

All Velázquez had to do was carefully climb up the hill of bones, place his piece of the disk on top of the trigger in the old sea-chest they had rigged there, and climb down again. He adjusted the tension in the trigger wires once more – and one spear misfired, striking him on the hand. As his vision blurred and his muscles grew weak from the poison, he managed to push the spear back into concealment in the pile.

"One more set of bones among so many will not be noticed," he thought.

* * *

Rodriguez, the trusted second in command, walked about three miles north and entered a deep cave he had seen in his dreams. There was enough charge remaining on his piece, the primary piece, for one more portal to be opened. Earth, air, fire, and water had been done, but the fifth element of Anunnaki alchemy remained: heart, that is to say, life. He could open a connection to a realm of living creatures who would protect the piece.

Once he was at the optimum point, deep in the caves, he worked the alchemical spell he had been shown, and a swampy smell filled the air. Two large alligators crawled forward toward him.

"Human," one of them hissed, "What do you wish of us?"

"You speak?" Rodriguez said in astonishment.

"We do, but most of our kin do not," said the second alligator, a female. "Some of us are descended from the Anunnaki."

"I come on a mission for the Annunaki," said Rodriguez. This metal piece must be guarded at all costs."

"What will you give us to do this?" asked the first alligator. "Do you have any food?"

"I have brought no food with me," said Rodriguez.

"Yes, you have," said the second alligator. "Your offering will suffice for us to guard the piece."

"What offering?" asked Rodriguez, beginning to realize what they meant. He reached for the flintlock pistol he carried, the first key.

The alligators moved forward swiftly, and their charge knocked the pistol from his hand.

* * *

Narváez took his piece and headed into the woods. In his pack was also the Mayan bowl, the third key. Unknown to him, he was being followed by Almagro.

Almagro was thinking, "He shouldn't have the piece. I should, because only I can hide it properly. No, not hide it... go back for the treasure. Yes, the treasure will be mine, all mine."

Almagro raced forward in a mad dash, slashing his comrade down with his sword. He grabbed the piece from the pack, ignoring the bowl, and raced away. He threw himself down in a clearing to catch his breath.

* * *

Four friars walked along the shore with their donkey.

"Look brothers, a ship," said Brother Gabrielo Sera, their leader.

"The Santa Lucia," said the handsome monk close behind him, Brother Francisco.

"I know that name from my historical studies," said a stouter monk, Brother Mateo. "It is the ship that disappeared from this coast 130 years ago, with the lost garrison of Ensenada Cristal."

"Zounds," said the tall monk with a scraggly beard, Brother Juan. "A g-ghost ship!"

"Sí, a ghost ship!" said Porto, their talking donkey.

"Verily, we have another mystery upon our hands, brothers," said Gabrielo. "Let us split up and look for clues. Brother Juan, Brother Mateo, and Porto will go on board the ship, while Brother Francisco and I search the nearby woods."

"Again, we have to search the most frightful places," sighed Juan. "Doubtless we will be chased by a phantasm."

"Fear not, it will turn out to be simply a knave in disguise," said Mateo.

They met up again after a brief search.

"Brother Francisco and I found nothing in the woods," said Gabrielo.

"The ship was deserted," said Mateo, "I found this bill of lading describing a cargo of treasure the ship was supposed to be carrying."

"Treasure!" exclaimed Francisco. "If only we had not taken vows of poverty."

"There was no trace of treasure aboard," said Mateo.

"Como... Porto and I found this bizarre picture of a pie with odd markings," said Juan. "It makes me hungry to look upon it."

"Sí, I'm hungry too," said Porto.

"That is no pie, but a navigation disk," said Mateo. "It will require much study."

"Let us continue on our way, brothers," said Gabrielo. "We may study these clues further at the church."

As they walked, they came to a clearing. A conquistador was lying on the ground.

"What have I done?" he moaned to himself.

"Greetings, sir," said Gabrielo. "We are the Fraternitas Mysterium. You seem to be in distress. May we assist you?"

"Nothing can help me now. I am lost!" cried Almagro. "There was a great evil on board my ship. I have succumbed to it again, and killed a man. All for a treasure, an immense treasure that is buried below Ensenada Cristal."

"Como... Can you show us where to find it?" asked Juan.

"Sí, tell us where it is," said Porto

"No! It is cursed, cursed I tell you!"

The man jumped to his feet and ran screaming into the night. They never saw him again.

Two pieces of shining metal remained on the ground.


	4. Ensenada Cristal, 1765, Fraternitas

**Ensenada Cristal, 1765**

Friar Gabriello Serra looked down from a window of the church to the bustling town below. It had grown a great deal in the last five years. The harbor was good for commerce, fish were plentiful, and avocados and other food crops grew well in the rich soil near the town.

The obsession of the Fraternitas Mysterium with the two metal pieces had also grown, so that it was difficult to sleep, or even to think about anything else. They had come to realize the pieces were tainted with evil. They had tried to throw them into the fire, and into the sea, but every time their hands simply refused to let them go.

All of them had been changed. None trusted the others, each thinking another would try to get the treasure first. Mateo, the smart one, was now only cunning. The healthy fear of Juan had turned to paranoia. The hot temper of Francisco had come out and he constantly sniped at the others. Porto was sullen. Gabriello himself felt angry and cruel, and capable of anything.

* * *

Fernando El Aguirre returned to the shop of Miguel the blacksmith. El Aguirre was still building the traps in his galleon in the mountains and a great many custom-made parts were required. Ensenda Cristal was still the best place to get them, for on the other side of the mountains was a desert. Only when the hiding place was complete would he be free of the cursed piece he carried with him everywhere in his pack.

"These thin circular saw blades are difficult to make, Sir," said Miguel. "They are finer work than the metal artifact of Friar Serra that was made by Bartimeo Magnus, and I am no master alchemist like him."

El Aguirre's interest was raised to a high pitch, but he kept his voice level. "You have seen this artifact?"

"Yes, Friar Serra and his talking donkey Porto brought it to me to examine a few years ago. I am the best expert in metal work in the town and they asked me what I made of it. I found the hallmark of the Magus on it."

"What did it look like?" asked El Aguirre.

"A triangular wedge, with a circle on one end, marked with the shape like a short letter 'U'," said Miguel.

"That is the piece I gave to either Narváez or Almagro." thought El Aguirre. "One of my men failed in their mission and the piece has fallen into innocent civilian hands. That friar must be corrupted by now. Some day soon he may turn to killing madness, and this man Miguel may be a target because he knows too much."

"I need to give you a warning," El Aguirre told Miguel. "You should leave this town as soon as possible. A great evil is coming here."

"Why? And what does it have to do with Friar Serra and Porto?" asked the blacksmith.

"It is on their behalf that I give you this warning," said El Aguirre. "They would tell you in person if they could."

"If they but realized how great an evil was behind that piece of metal, and were in their right minds, they would," he thought.

After the former conquistador left, Miguel ran to tell his wife Bianca.

"A customer gave me a warning from Friar Serra," he told her. "A great evil is coming on this town, and we should leave."

"How does he know?" asked Bianca.

"Friar Serra is a man of God, and some say he is mad. Madmen and holy men sometimes see visions of the future. The message was also from his talking donkey, Porto. Animals can sense danger before people can."

Bianca told her friends. The rumor spread, growing in the telling, and soon many families were preparing to evacuate.

Meanwhile, Aguirre was questioning people in another part of the town. "Where may I find Friar Serra? He has an object of grave importance to the Crown of Spain. There may be a reward."

"He may not be at the church at this time of day. He and his followers often meet at the inn on Rattlesnake Road," said a heavyset man.

El Aguirre set off, letting his informant lead the way.

Around the corner, the sharp ears of the donkey Porto pricked up. Officers of the King were looking for the pieces! If they were found in the possession of the friars, Porto and all the others might face the gallows. At best, the soldiers would confiscate the pieces, and that was not to be tolerated.

Porto raced down the street, not even thinking about warning the others. He had to get away with at least one of the pieces for himself.

He ran up the steep hill to the church, and opened the concealed panel where the pieces were kept. Only one piece was there; he took it. Then he opened the secret passage they had built to get to the caves below the city. For years now he had been collecting barrels of gunpowder, pretending that he was one of the donkeys that carried supplies from the ships in the harbor to the garrison. He had been planning to use them to try to force open a passage to the cave with the treasure, once he had a better idea where it was. Now he had a different, desperate plan.

He had noticed the fault line cracks that had opened up with a small earth tremor two years ago. If he could get an explosion to set off an earthquake, he might escape in the confusion. If it was bad enough it might kill the soldiers who were after the piece, and kill off the witnesses in town who might talk. Perhaps Porto himself would be believed lost in the disaster. It was the best plan he could think of, given the state of his mind, and the entity that was manipulating him didn't care about collateral damage.

* * *

"Here they are!" called the informant, as he pushed open the door into the room where Brother Mateo, Brother Juan, and Brother Francisco were staring at the piece on the table before them.

"That piece does not belong to you," said El Aguirre. "You must surrender it to me!"

The answer was a snarl from Juan. He lifted up a chair and smashed it over the head of the heavyset informant, who crumbled to the ground.

Mateo came around the table, intent on doing a body-slam on the soldier.

El Aguirre started to draw his sword when the light and agile Brother Francisco leaped upon his back. The soldier realized these men were caught up in battle madness as he had once been, and this was a fight he could lose, outnumbered as he was and out of condition from his time in the mountains.

He desperately threw Francisco over his back onto Juan, as his pack ripped free from the worn straps that held it to his back.

He tossed a chair into the way of Mateo, but the heavy man's momentum batted it aside and he crashed a shoulder into El Aguirre, throwing him back against the wall.

El Aguirre just managed to raise his sword as Mateo charged again, and the friar impaled himself on the blade. El Aguirre had to drop the weapon as the heavy man's fall pulled it out of his hand.

Juan and Francisco were getting up, and El Aguirre desperately swept the piece off the table and unto the floor. Just as he hoped, the two monks began fighting over the piece instead of concentrating on him. He seized another chair and struck each one over the head, knocking them out.

El Aguirre collected his pack and thrust the captured piece inside. He slipped out of the inn quickly and headed out of town.

* * *

Porto fled with the piece in his mouth after setting a fuse to the charges, heading towards land that had become oddly swamp-like in the last few years.

Brother Serra saw him go and pursued with a torch from the church. He knew only that Porto had betrayed them and stolen a piece. It was enough. He intended to kill the donkey if he caught him.

Two alligators stood in the path in Porto's way.

"What have you done, brother?" one alligator called. "You have betrayed the humans and stolen a piece like the one we have promised to protect."

"Please don't hurt me! I didn't mean to betray them," cried Porto in terror. The piece dropped from his mouth as he spoke.

"Confess what you did," hissed the other alligator. "Make your peace."

"I did it. I set an explosion to destroy the town," said Porto.

Then the alligators were upon him. They knocked him down, clamped on their jaws, and started dragging him away.

Serra arrived in time to hear the confession and see the death of Porto, and he did nothing to stop it. He picked up the dropped piece and started backing away.

One alligator opened its mouth enough to say, "Heed our warning. It always starts with the animal. They are the easiest for the evil Anunnaki to cause to betray their friends."

Serra turned and ran. As he approached the church there was the sound of an explosion. The whole hillside below the church collapsed and swept everything below it into the sea.

* * *

El Aguirre felt the tremors and ran for higher ground. He leaped clear just in time as an avalanche of rocks descended.

"That was too close," he said to himself. "But I have saved a second piece to hide in my place of safety."

He opened his pack to check on the pieces, and to his shock saw only one. The piece marked with a 'U' was there, but not his original piece, marked with a triangle. It must have dropped out of his pack in the struggle.

"There's nothing more I can do about the lost piece," he thought. "I hope it will stay hidden deep in the sea. I still have one piece to protect."

* * *

Friar Serra walked slowly back toward the town, fearful of what he would find. He saw a crowd of people waiting for him. He felt like running, but he made himself keep coming forward.

"Brother Serra, your warning saved us! We got out before the earthquake plunged the town into the sea!" said blacksmith Miguel.

"What?" asked Serra in surprise. "I warned you?"

"Yes, it happened just as you predicted. And where is Porto?" asked a woman.

"He is dead," said Serra.

"I saw him running through the town earlier today. The brave donkey must have kept trying to warn everyone until it was too late," said another.

"What a heroic animal!" called someone else in the crowd.

"Hurrah for the donkey who saved Ensenada Cristal!' cried another, and everyone took up the cheer.

"Let them think what they will," thought Brother Serrra. "It is better than the truth."

Later, he hid the piece he saved in a fresh cheese bound for a cave for decades of aging, and then for transport far away. He was done with mysteries and treasure.

"In many years, that cheese will be opened and the evil will continue. I know my spirit will never rest until it is stopped," said Serra to himself.


	5. Ensenada Cristal, 1830, Alianza

**Ensenada Cristal, 1830**

El Sabueso, a broad-shouldered masked teenager with a strong chin said, "Now let's see who La Llorona really is."

He pulled back the damp hair that obscured the face of the bound person in a white dress. The hair came off as a wig, revealing a man's face.

"Alejandro Rivas?" the gang said in chorus.

"Why did you pretend to be a ghost that weeps for her drowned children, and comes out of the water to capture the bad children who stay out too late?" asked La Tigresa, a masked blonde woman.

"I thought it would be Mrs. Verde, who always yells at the noisy kids," said the tall masked young man in a serape, known as El Mapache.

"That is what he wanted us to think," said La Osa, the shorter masked brunette woman in a broad-brimmed hat. "He wanted to get her into trouble so that he could take over her land and expand his llama farm. But he made one mistake – he made his wig out of llama fur, which has a distinctive odor when wet."

"I would have gotten away with it too, if not for you masked vigilante kids," said Rivas.

"Hey Rivas, don't forget me," said the masked skunk. "Since you like to stink so much, here is a present from El Fuchi!"

"El Fuchi, no!" yelled the gang, but it was too late.

"Fuchi, fuchi, foo!" called the animal as it delivered its spray.

The gang gasped and covered their noses.

"He does it every time," sighed La Osa.

"Well, that is the end of another successful case," said La Tigresa in a choked voice. "Let's go somewhere the air is clearer and celebrate."

"Stop right there, you masked marauders!" yelled a harsh voice.

"It's the Captain of the Guard! Run for it," said El Sabueso. The gang took off, leaving their smelly captive for the officer to hopefully arrest.

The gang scattered and regrouped in the woods a little later.

"It is a shame we have to hide our identities with masks and fight crime in secret," said La Osa.

"With the corrupt mayor we have, there is no other choice," said the leader, also known as Alfonso Del Bosque. "I have to operate in disguise so he won't find out his own son is El Sabueso, the Hound of Justice!"

"Why didn't you pick a name like El Zorro, a cunning fox?" asked La Tigresa, whose real name was Consuela Blanco.

"The fox steals from the hen-house, but the hound guards it," said Alfonso/El Sabueso.

"I prefer a name that strikes fear in the hearts: the tigress," said the Consuela/La Tigresa.

"I am happy with being the bear, fearsome but cuddly and lovable," said La Osa, whose real name was Carmen Dominguez. She gazed intently at El Mapache.

"Como... I am like the hungry raccoon that prowls through the garbage at night; I want something to eat right now," said El Mapache, whose real name was Gomez Rodriguez.

"Why do you say 'como' all the time?" asked Carmen/La Osa.

"Why not? A famous crime-solving monk in this town used to do it. Como... como como como como?" said Gomez/El Mapache.

"How do you eat like you eat? A very good question," said Carmen.

"Let's go eat now," said El Fuchi.

"You need to remain in the woods a while longer, El Fuchi," said Alfonso firmly. "We'll bring you something."

"Please!" said El Fuchi.

"Let him come," said Gomez. "Como... He is the heart of the Alianza Misterio, and my best friend."

"All right, but try to stay downwind," said Alfonso.

La Llorona had been caught in a trap during the night, but now it was daylight and the market was open. They entered the market square, where a pile of tortillas had been prepared for breakfast customers.

Consuela looked over the wares at a vendor's stall of pottery. "That pot is an unusual style. It's not like ones made by the indios from around here. May I look at it?"

Inez Marcos the pottery vendor nodded, and Consuela picked it up and turned it upside-down to look for a mark of the maker. "Third key? What does that mean?"

"May I see?" asked El Fuchi.

Consuela set it on the ground, and El Fuchi sniffed it. Suddenly he turned around and kicked dirt into it with his hind legs. The gang watched in surprise.

"Why did you do that, El Fuchi?" asked Carmen.

"I don't know. There is something strange about it. An impulse just came over me."

"Never mind that, let's eat," said Gomez. "Ay! There were stacks of tortillas a minute ago. Now they are gone."

He walked over to the tortilla stall. "Señora Ricardo, Where did you put the tortillas? I want to buy some."

The old tortilla maker, Lucia Ricardo, said, "I don't know, Señor Mapache. They vanished before my eyes. One moment they were there and the next they had disappeared."

"Como... How could that be?" asked Gomez.

Lucia shrugged. "Maybe a hungry ghost. It is close to Dia De Los Muertos."

"G-ghost?" said Gomez. El Fuchi leaped into his arms, causing his nose to wrinkle up.

"It looks like we have another mystery on our hands, amigos," said Alfonso.

Consuela said, "I will buy the bowl. I don't know if it has anything to do with this, but it might."

She came from a wealthy family and could afford it. As she paid the vendor, Consuela asked, "Where did you get it from, Señora Marcos?"

Inez Marcos said, "A man named Jose Izquierdo found it deep in the haunted woods and sold it to me."

"Como... Haunted woods," Gomez groaned. "It always has to be somewhere like that."

"Where can we find him?" Carmen asked.

"He is a woodcutter, and his shop is over there," said Inez, pointing.

* * *

Jose led the group on a rarely-used path through the dark trees that evening, when his work was done. "Here is the place. I found the bowl inside an old army pack that was crumbling to bits."

"Here is what is left of the pack," said Carmen. "It looks like the cloth is over a hundred years old, and the style is a hundred years older than that. Its like something used by the old conquistadors. There's nothing else left in it."

"I have to go back home now," said Jose. "I don't like being out here when it starts to get dark."

He headed back the way they came and was soon out of sight.

"There may be more clues around here," Alfonso suggested. "Let's split up and look, amigos. El Mapache and El Fuchi can check down the slope, La Tigresa and I will check up the slope, and La Osa can check further down this trail. "

El Mapache and El Fuchi walked timidly down the slope.

"Of course the spooky stuff will be this way, right old friend?" said El Mapache.

"I smell old bones," said El Fuchi.

"I knew it," said El Mapache.

Half-hidden under a bush was a skeleton, with an arm sticking out.

"I g-guess it can't hurt us, right Fuchi?" said El Mapache, giving the arm bone a tentative tug.

"I am the ghost of Fernando El Aguirre! Leave my bones alone!" came a hollow voice. A face wearing a conquistador helmet appeared from the bush. The face was smeared with green and black decay.

"Ay-yi-yi! Run!" cried El Mapache.

He and El Fuchi ran up the slope as fast as they could. The ghost pursued, waving a sword at them.

"Ghost! Ghost!" El Mapache shouted as he reached the road. "It's a conny creepquistador! I mean a creepy conquistador."

El Sabueso, La Tigresa, and La Osa came running back.

"Are you sure you two aren't just jumping at shadows?" asked La Osa.

"It was real. And there were human bones. Come back with us and we'll show you," said El Fuchi.

They went back to the spot.

"There isn't anything here," said La Osa. "No bones, nothing."

"I can still smell a trace of them," said El Fuchi.

"Someone must have moved them," said El Sabueso.

"Or, como... they moved themselves," said El Mapache.

Searching around the area revealed nothing more. They climbed back up the hill to the road.

There, on a tree by the road, someone had nailed a note. "You are all doomed! You must not stir up the secrets of Ensenada Cristal."

La Trigresa said, "Look, they signed it."

In the bark of the tree below the note was the letter 'Z', scratched with the tip of a fencing sword.

"Señor Z?" asked El Mapache.


	6. Ensenada Cristal, 1831, Alianza

**Ensenada Cristal, 1831**

Alfonso was having dinner with his father, Mayor Fausto Del Bosque.

"I'm going to come down hard on my political enemies, my son," said the Mayor. "They will soon find that the term 'rotting in prison' is not a figure of speech."

"That seems harsh, Sir," said Alfonso.

"Being harsh is the only way to keep power. I've warned them of the price of crossing me, and I never bluff."

* * *

Meanwhile, Conseula was dining with her parents.

"I would like to go out with my friends again this evening," she told them.

"Remember the rules of chaperoning yourselves, darling," her mother Elena said. "Even though you are engaged to Alfonso and Carmen is engaged to Gomez, always stay together in a group. Don't let Alfonso split you off from the others."

"Of course not, Mother," said Consuela, blushing.

"I'm so pleased you found a good catch in the Mayor's son. In just a few months you and Carmen will have a double wedding. I hope you will be very happy."

"I know we will be," said Consuela with a smile.

* * *

That evening the Alianza Misterio met near the church.

"Let's review what we know," said La Osa. "We've been in communication with a mysterious Señor Z, who seems to be a crime-fighter like ourselves. At least, he gave us clues in the case of the plant monster that was robbing the Avocados' farm, and in several other cases."

"Como... I think they prefer that pronounced A_**voc**_ados," said El Mapache.

"Right, but never mind. He also suggested we investigate what happened to the group of four crime-solving friars, the Fraternitas Mysterium."

"We know what happened – three died in the earthquake, and the last one, the heroic Friar Serra, died of old age and his body was mummified. It's on display in the narthex of his church," said El Sabueso.

"Yes, but there is still a mystery," said La Osa. "I found out Friar Serra was known to carry a cane with a beautiful crystal on its head. In honor of his saving the city, the glassblowers of the town made dozens of replicas of it to use as door-knobs. Glass door-knobs shaped like that have become a tradition in Ensenada Cristal ever since. But when Friar Serra was buried, the cane was placed in the coffin but the crystal was gone."

"So what?" asked El Fuchi. "What does it have to do with the real treasure we want, the huge treasure of the lost galleon?"

"Patience, amigo," said La Osa. "It does tie in. With Alfredo's help I was able to get permission to examine the church archives. There I found a diary of one of the monks, Brother Mateo. He wrote of searching a hundred-year-old Spanish galleon."

"A hundred-year-old galleon?" asked El Mapache.

"The Santa Lucia, the lost galleon commanded by the Conquistador Fernando Aguirre," said La Osa.

"Now we're getting somewhere," said La Tigresa.

"Como.. we're getting into g-ghost territory. That's the name of the creepy Conquistador ghost who chased El Fuchi and me," said El Mapache.

"I have an idea about that," said El Sabueso. "It's probably an imposter after the treasure for himself."

"Anyway, Mateo didn't find any treasure on board except for one thing: the door-knobs in the Captain's part of the ship were made of brilliantly sparkling crystals, which he believed to be huge diamonds," said La Osa.

"Como... a ship so rich that they used diamonds for door-knobs?" said El Mapache. "That's some treasure-ship!"

"Sí!" El Fuchi's eyes glowed with greedy interest.

"Mateo confessed that he was tempted, and stole one of the knobs. He concealed in in his robes and hid it in his room at the church. I think Brother Serra didn't discover the theft until after the earthquake, and when he did he had the knob mounted on his cane," said La Osa.

"But what became of the gem?" asked El Subueso.

"That's something we need to check out. Brother Serra had many bitter things to say in his writings about how the search for the cursed treasure corrupted and ruined his friends. I think he may have chosen not to be buried with the gem, but to hide it somewhere just before he died," said La Osa.

"So maybe it's hidden in the church?" asked El Mapache.

"That's why we're going to search the church tonight," said La Osa.

* * *

They went to the church and perhaps by luck, perhaps by unseen guidance found a secret passage leading down into caves. They descended with ropes and used torches to look around.

"I don't see any diamonds," said La Tigresa.

"Try searching the pools of water down here, too. A clear diamond submerged in water is hard to spot, but this one may still be attached to the setting which held it to the cane," suggested La Osa.

They went in different directions, all looking in the pools.

"I found it!" called El Mapache, reaching in his hand and pulling up the glittering gem.

The Conquistador appeared from behind a rock, wearing a helmet and breastplate over tattered clothes. What could be seen of his features under the helmet were a ghastly green. He waved a deadly-looking cutlass.

"Ay-yi-yi, it's the creepy Conquistador!" said El Mapache.

"Mine! The diamond was stolen from my ship!" the monster yelled.

He charged El Mapache, knocked him down with the handle of his sword, grabbed the gem from him, ran back to the cave entrance, and began to climb one of the ropes back to the church.

"Catch him!" shouted El Sabueso.

"We'll never do it. He's too fast," said La Tigresa.

The monster was agile and climbing very fast.

"Everyone get on one of the other ropes," said El Sabueso. "We can trap him with rope-wrap maneuver eleven."

Each grabbed one of he other ropes and they half-ran, half-swung around in a circle, entangling the rope holding the climbing villain with their own ropes. Soon he was helpless, dangling in the air with ropes wound around him.

They climbed and hauled him up into the church.

"Now let's see who the Conquistador really is," said El Sabueso.

"I think it's the woodcutter, Jose Izquirdo," said El Mapache. "Como... he found the old pack and might have found the armor. He knew where we were that night and he was out of sight before the monster showed up."

El Sabueso pulled off the helmet, revealing a familiar face daubed with green mud.

"The Mayor?" they all said in chorus, except Alfonso, who said, "My fa..." before correcting to "The Mayor" like everyone else.

"That's correct, and you meddling kids are in big trouble," said Mayor Fausto Del Bosque.

"Are you all right, Sir?" called a voice from outside the church, and Brazil Piedra, the Captain of the Guard entered with three armed soldiers.

"Captain Piedra, the Mayor tried to steal a diamond. In the name of justice, you must arrest him," said El Sabueso.

"Justice in this town is what I say it is," said Fausto. "And I say it is you young vigilantes who are under arrest."

"Of course, your Excellency," said Captain Piedra. The Alianza members were surrounded and captured, except El Fuchi who hid in the shadows under a pew. The Mayor was quickly untied.

"Say the word, and we can make them disappear into your dungeons forever," said one of the soldiers.

"Wait, do you know who I am?" asked Alfonso.

"Actually, I do, Alfonso," said the Mayor. "One man might hide his identity under a mask, but four friends who always disappear together at night? It was obvious."

"You'd lock up your own son?" asked Alfonso.

"For your sake, I will offer a deal," said the Mayor. "You have served your purpose in finding the diamond for me. Now, no more crime-solving, no more treasure-hunting, no word from any of you about this. If any of your offers me any trouble, you all go to the dungeons. You really wouldn't like that."

"Como... What about Señor Z? He knows about all this and we have no control over what he says," said Gomez.

Captain Piedra laughed. "Don't worry about him. I am Señor Z. I was working with his Excellency to get you to find the diamond, as well as clear up a few police cases for us."

"So, you will take the deal?" asked the Mayor.

"Yes," said Alfonso.

"We have no choice," said Carmen.

"I have to agree," said Consuela.

"It's an offer we can't refuse," said Gomez.

"Never," said El Fuchi, emerging from the shadows with obsession in his eyes. "I will never give up looking for the treasure."

The others gasped.

"No matter what happens to your friends?" asked the Mayor.

"El Fuchi! Please!" cried Gomez.

"No matter what. Nothing is worth more to me than the treasure," said El Fuchi.

"I never bluff," said the Mayor. "Your freedom is forfeit, all of you. Seize the animal!"

El Fuchi raised his tail and delivered his final words on the subject, before running off into the woods and leaving his ex-friends to their miserable fate.

"Fuchi, fuchi, foo!"


	7. Crystal Cove, 1864, Gang

**Crystal Cove, 1864**

The Sheriff stood in front of the jail cell door, staring with a grim expression at the four teenagers within.

"You see this here badge? It means if'n there's a crime in Crystal Cove, I solve it," said Sheriff "Iron Will" Williamson, aka Dead Justice.

"Sorry, Sheriff," said Maria, leader of the Mystery Gang. "We were just trying to help capture the Ghost Riders."

"Well, I don't need no help from no womenfolk," said Dead Justice. "When Cletus Darrow found gold here a few years ago, he created a lawless gold-rush town. I came here and brought justice with my shootin' iron and my good left hand."

"You're a right smart sheriff, everyone kin swear to that," said Stella.

"Don't try to curry favor. Give me your names, little ladies, and I'll send word to your folks to come git you out of the hoosegow."

"I don't like your disrespect," said the raven-haired leader. "I am Maria Pacheco, and my family has had a land grant here from when this whole region was part of Mexico."

Dead Justice snorted and said nothing.

"And I'm Stella Houston, a Texan," said the red-haired member of the gang.

"Houston? Any relation to the ex-governor of Texas?" asked Dead Justice.

"Yup. He's my uncle," said Stella.

"That don't carry much weight with me. The man was a durn fool to lose his office by refusing allegiance to the Confederacy," said Dead Justice.

"Some might say that wasn't so foolish," said the third girl. "The South's chances aren't looking so good. They're running out of supplies and money. Not to mention that slavery is wrong."

"And your name is?" asked Dead Justice coldly.

"Patience Sullivan, daughter of the local Methodist minister, Andrew Sullivan." She was blond, shorter than the others, and wore glasses due to too much reading by candle-light.

"He's one of them Northern Methodists, I reckon," said Dead Justice.

"Lahk, I'm Abigail Hawgshank, but everyone calls me Sissy," said the tallest of the young women. "Daughter of Betsy Hawgshank."

"The divorced woman who works at the Rose Quartz Saloon? Sometimes called Sweet Betsy from Pike?" asked Dead Justice.

""Lahk, it's not her fault things didn't work out with my father. They had a tough time coming west from Ohio," said Sissy.

"You're more mixed than a pack of wildcats and coyotes," said Dead Justice. "How did you all ever get together?"

"My mother, Doña Elena Pacheco, was a widow and she married Stella's father, Mr. Adam Houston," said Maria. "We're step-sisters."

"The other two are friends we invited to help work our cattle ranch to keep 'em out of trouble," said Stella.

"I guess the ranch explains the bull I got tied up outside," said Dead Justice. "One of your'n?"

"Tiny's a talking bull, and a full member of the gang," said Patience.

"Huh? That's got to be a load of bull if'n I ever heard one," said Dead Justice.

"It's the truuuth!" bellowed a deep voice from outside.

"Well, I'll be jiggered," said Dead Justice.

"We're dab hands at mysteries and spooks," said Stella. "Give us another chance, please."

"You gals want to look into spooks and such-like? Better look around Scorpion Wells. I hear tell they got a haunted mountain near there. But don't blame me if'n you don't come back alive."

"We'll check it out, Sheriff," said Maria.

"Do we hafta?" asked Sissy. ""Lahk, I'm allergic to haunted mountains."

"You do that and stay outa my way," said Dead Justice. "I got my hands full already. Nitro Wisinski is in the area."

"Who's that?" asked Stella.

"He's a bank robbin' owlhoot. His family's from Poland, but he was raised in Mexico," said Dead Justice.

"Is Nitro a Polish name?" asked Sissy.

"It's short for nitroglycerine, an explosive," said Patience. "It must be his criminal nickname."

"Yep, nitro's a newfangled explosive liquid that's used in mining. Wisinski uses it to blow open bank safes. I asked Darrow Mining Company to send me some samples so I'd know what I'm dealin' with."

"May I see some?" asked Patience. "I'm interested in chemistry."

"You may not," said Dead Justice. "It's unstable stuff. Drop a bottle and it'll blow ya to kingdom come."

"Land sakes!" said Sissy.

"I'm busy and tired of all this chitchat," said Dead Justice. "I'll let you off with a warning this time, but stay outa crime-solving in my town."

* * *

The Mystery Gang camped by a small river in the vicinity of Scorpion Wells.

"Easy on the chow, Sissy," said Maria.

"Lahk, I'm so hongry I could eat a bear, claws and all," said Sissy.

"Be careful," said Patience. "If you start to get hefty it'll be harder to find a man."

"I'm still growin'," said Sissy. "'Sides, I ain't that interested in 'em."

"You will be when you're a mite older," said Patience.

"That's as may be, right, Stella?" asked Sissy.

"Yup," said Stella, giving her a warm smile.

"Enough, you twoooo," said Tiny. "Loook, I see sooomething in the water."

There was a metal bowl of some sort a little way out in a shallow part of the stream.

"A drinking bowl, mebbe," said Stella. She went out and retrieved it.

"Let me try it," said Tiny. "I'm gooood and thirsty."

They offered him the bowl and he lapped up water from it.

"Hold on, this isn't a bowl," said Patience. "It's a helmet, like the ones the conquistadors used to wear. Strange, it isn't rusty at all."

"It has words carved inside it," said Maria. "Segundo llave. That means second key. Strange."

"How'd it get here?" asked Stella.

"Maybe a flash flood washed it down from the mountains," said Maria. "I remember an old story about a conquistador who used to come into Ensenada Cristal a hundred years ago. Some say he lived up on Mount Diabla."

"Lahk, where's Ensenada Cristal?" asked Sissy.

"That's what they used to call Crystal Cove," said Patience. "Mr. Darrow renamed the town to the English translation of the old name after he found gold-bearing rose quartz ore here."

"Ain't there a legend the conquistadors left a cursed treasure in these parts?" asked Stella. "Mebbe it's up on the mountain, not buried under Crystal Cove."

"I saw we climb up there and take a look around," said Maria.

"I can't goooo up mountains," complained Tiny.

"Lahk, I'll stay back with you and keep you company, Tiny," said Sissy. "No curses on a devil mountain for me."

"We'll need to go back to the ranch first for climbing supplies," said Maria. "Tiny can stay there."

"I'll be left ooout, but oookay" said Tiny.

"Let's camp here tonight and get some shut-eye," said Stella. "We can firm up our plans tomorrow."

That night, all of them had nightmares.

"I dreamed of being chased through red-curtained rooms by a horned devil," said Patience.

"Lahk, me too," said Sissy. "It was plain awful."

"Me tooo," said Tiny. "And I saw all of yoooou."

"And I saw you-all," said Stella.

"So did I," said Maria.

"It's strange, but I don't feel quite myself this morning," said Stella. "Maybe I'm just tired after the nightmares, but I'm feeling out-of-sorts."

"Lahk, it feels like I kinda lost something, but I don't know what," said Sissy. "Not as happy, all of a sudden."

"One thing I've lost is my patience," said Patience. "Let's get a move-on back to the ranch."

"You're not the trail boss here, I am," snapped Maria.

"Go noooow," said Tiny in an irritated tone.

They packed up and hit the trail, trying to keep their tempers in check. Each was wondering if they might be the one to find the treasure of the Sierra Diabla.


	8. Crystal Cove, still 1864, Gang

**Crystal Cove, still 1864**

The Mystery Gang rode back toward Crystal Cove.

"Where's the helmet? I want to look at it again," said Patience.

"I moved it from camp last night and hid it among the rocks," said Maria. "I think it's haunted. That's what gave us all nightmares."

"Lahk, it's gotta be haunted," said Sissy.

"Spooooky," said Tiny. "I shoooldn't have drunk water frooom it."

"That's just superstitious. It was a coincidence we had similar nightmares," said Patience.

"You really think so?" asked Stella.

"Well..." said Patience.

"We'll get it again when we come back, if you want to check it for more clues," said Maria.

In town, the main street was buzzing with excitement. Smoke was pouring from the Crystal Cove Savings and Loan.

"What happened here?" Stella asked a passerby.

"Don't you know? Nitro Wisinski robbed the bank. He blew open the safe."

"Where's the Sheriff?" asked Stella.

"He took off after Nitro. Vowed he would chase him to the ends of the earth and bring him to justice."

"No posse?" asked Sissy.

"He went alone."

The girls pulled their horses into a huddle for a minute.

"We should help him," said Maria.

"Lahk, he don't want our help," said Sissy.

"It's a chance to prove ourselves," said Patience. "Then maybe he'll let us investigate mysteries in town."

"Let's follow his tracks if we can," said Stella.

"I'm gooood at tracking," said Tiny.

They followed the tracks and stopped at the neck of a land-bridge.

"Volcano Spit," said Sissy. "Do we hafta go out there?"

Patience said, "It leads out to the only active volcano in the area, out in the waters of the Cove. It would have been a volcanic island except for the bridge."

Stella said, "The bridge is narrow and undermined by waves. It looks like it could collapse at any time."

"Lahk, let's turn back," said Sissy.

"If it can hold a man on horseback, it can hold us," said Maria. "We'll go one at a time."

The four young women caught up with Dead Justice at the lip of the volcano. He was mounted on his own horse, Greg.

"You girls go back," he told them. "This is a man's job. Nitro Wisinski is dangerous. You go home and let me catch him."

"There's just one thing, Sheriff," said Patience.

"Oh yeah? What's that?" said Dead Justice.

"There was only one set of fresh horse tracks we followed here," said Patience.

"Now ain't you smart?" said Dead Justice. "All right, I admit it. I robbed the bank in disguise and doubled back, then lit out after myself."

"So Nitro Wisinski isn't really near here? You're just letting him take the blame?" asked Stella.

"I made up Wisinski from whole cloth. It was an excuse to get the nitro to blow the safe from the Darrow Mining Company. And I knew I'd have to do an accent to disguise my voice. Nobody round here knows what a Polish-Mexican accent would sound like."

"But why steal after all these years?" Stella asked. "I thought you were an honest man."

"For a good cause," said Dead Justice. "I plan to pass the gold on to the Confederacy. They desperately need money to keep up the good fight for state's rights and the right to own slaves."

With a whip of his left hand he had a gun pointing at the gang.

"You know how fast I am with this. I'll give you a choice, 'cause I don't like shooting down innocents in cold blood. A ship is coming with Confederate sailors to take the gold I stole. I figger they'll be happy to take you off my hands."

"And if we refuse?" said Patience.

"I was going to say I chased Nitro Wisinski down into the volcano and he fell into the lava, taking the gold with him. Nice thing about a volcano. It's just as easy to hide four real bodies as one imaginary one. I reckon you'll take the choice that keeps you alive."

"You're a monster," said Stella.

Tiny charged from behind Dead Justice. He had moved quietly into position from the start, in case of trouble, because of their suspicions about the tracks.

Dead Justice turned and fired, but there was no way to stop a charging bull. Tiny slammed into the man and his horse and they both went over the lip of the volcano. The horse slid down the slope and into a pool of burning magma. Dead Justice didn't even have time to scream.

"Tiny, are you all right?" asked Maria.

"Juuust a nick. His aim wasn't soooo goood as the legends," said Tiny.

Nitro's equipment was found nearby. There was a serape, a broad-brimmed hat, glasses with eye-concealing reflective lenses, and a discarded wad of actor's clay make-up. There were also a couple of glass vials containing a clear liquid, carefully wrapped in cotton wool. There was no gold; it has gone into the volcano with Dead Justice.

Patience examined them with interest, then started to stow them in a saddle-bag.

Stella said, "Let's ditch that stuff into the volcano."

"No, they're evidence," said Patience. "We have to show them in town so people will believe us when we tell them what happened."

"For Tiny's sake we need to tell a different story," said Maria.

"Lahk, Nitro and Dead Justice died together in the volcano, which is basically true," said Sissy.

"We solve crimes. We don't cover them up," said Patience.

Patience put the things into the saddle-bag, put it on her horse, and remounted.

"But Tiny killed a man. What justice can a bull get, even though he was defending our lives and honor?" asked Stella.

"They'll shoooot me down," said Tiny.

"I refuse to lie," said Patience. "You didn't have to kill him."

She turned her horse and began riding back across the land-bridge toward town.

Tiny bellowed, "Yoooou are betraying me! Yoou want me oooout of the way so yooou can have all the treasure fooor yooourself!"

He charged Patience.

Maria rode after him, desperately trying to get her lasso out. "Tiny! No! Stop!"

Tiny slammed into Patience and the nitro in her saddle-bag went off. Maria, Patience, and Tiny were caught in explosion. Rocks flew everywhere and the whole land bridge collapsed into the sea.

Sissy and Stella gaped in shock.

"No. It can't be," said Sissy.

"I just can't take it in. My stepsister and two of my best friends are gone," said Stella.

Sissy said, "We got another problem. We're caught on the island with the land-bridge gone."

Stella said, "I can't swim. Can you?"

Sissy shook her head. "No water, no trees here. Nobody knows we're here and we can't count on townfolk coming any time soon."

"What will we do?" asked Stella.

"Only one thing to do – meet the Confederate ship ourselves," said Sissy.

"No!" said Stella.

"We have no choice," said Sissy.

"What if they ask about the Sheriff and the gold?" asked Stella.

"We know nothing. We're just two friends who went for a horse ride and got caught when the volcano got active and the land-bridge went down," said Sissy.

"I don't like this at all," said Stella.

"We'll survive. We'll get back to this neck of the woods somehow, someday. Somebody's got to tell the story of the heroic Dead Justice who chased Nitro Wisinski into the mouth of a volcano," said Sissy.

"That story?" asked Stella.

"For Tiny's sake," said Sissy.

"Wherever we end up, I'll be there for you," said Stella.

"Pardners?" asked Sissy.

"Pardners," said Stella.

* * *

After Stella and Sissy left on the Confederate ship, the evil entity contemplated the situation. Heat and lava leaking from the fire dimension had created the volcano. It might be useful again someday. It would be a good challenge for another of his groups, if a villain base was established there. But the villain would need undisturbed time. He began to use his influence to make the town forget the volcanic island ever existed.


	9. Crystal Cove, 1881, Benevolent Lodge

******Crystal Cove, 1881, Benevolent Lodge**

Oswald P. Burlington, the young railroad baron, stood at the front of an elegant rented meeting room in the finest hotel in Crystal Cove.

He was wearing a tailored suit with ruffs at the sleeves, with an ascot around his neck. Aviator goggles pushed up on his forehead were the only thing giving him an air of informality. That, and his cheerful grin.

"Thank you for coming, my friends. I've been in correspondence by mail with each of you, but this is the first time we've all met in person. I am Oswald P. Burlington, your host and the founder of what I hope will be the most fascinating club you've ever joined, the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery."

"You promised more than a social club," said a woman with long brunette hair and glasses. Her accent was strongly German. "Abigail Gluck has time only for scientific endeavors."

"This is one, my dear Miss Abigail Gluck, as you will see," said Oswald.

"I am Marianne Blanchard," said a blonde woman with classically beautiful features. Her accent was slightly French. "I have come because of my cultural and historical interests."

"I'm Ebeneezer O'Rourke, but please call me Scotty," said a tall red-haired man. On the chair beside him he had placed a top hat with a small lamp attached to the band. "I'm a jack-of-all-trades, just hoping for a wee bit of fun and adventure."

"Isn't O'Rourke an Irish surname?" asked Marianne.

"Aye, but I'm a Scott nonetheless," said Scotty, with even more of a Scottish accent than before.

"I have something to show you, friends," said Oswald. He strode to three covered paintings on stands at the front of the room and unveiled them. The first showed three monks and a donkey. The second showed four masked people and a masked skunk. The third showed four cowgirls and a bull.

Marianne giggled in surprise, Scotty laughed out loud, and Abigail just looked blank.

"Lyke, that's quite an art collection you have there, Oswald," said Scotty. "Where did you come by them?"

"I had them painted on commission," said Oswald. "All three groups are real: four people and one talking animal, and all from around Crystal Cove. The Fraternitas Mysterium, the Alianza Misterio, and the Mystery Gang."

"Is that some sort of social fashion?" asked Marianne.

"I've determined that none of them copied the others. All groups formed independently in different historical periods, and all of them solved mysteries. Quite a coincidence, wouldn't you say?"

"Yes, but coincidences do happen," said Abigail.

"And what if I told you that every time one of these groups formed, spontaneous adventures happened to them, in which they solved crimes committed by individuals in monster disguises, in dozens of documented cases per group?"

"I don't know how to explain it," said Abigail.

"Unless you're pulling our legs, mon," said Scotty.

"Not at all," said Oswald. "I have documented proof, letters from eyewitnesses and memoirs of some group members themselves."

"What does this have to do with us?" asked Marianne.

"I am proposing that we ourselves form such a group, and see if we can get the mysterious effect to apply to us," said Oswald.

"That is quite absurd," said Abigail.

"Not to say daft," said Scotty.

"We'll put it to the test," said Oswald, "Stay the week here in Crystal Cove at my expense, and if no mysteries occur in that time I will admit I'm off track. I promise you I haven't arranged any."

"I don't know about mysteries," said Marianne. "But the weather is delightful here and I welcome the holiday."

"I will stay the week," said Abigail "I don't want a wasted trip."

"Lyke, if you all are staying I may as well," said Scotty. "The food here is grand."

"In fairness should give you a warning," said Oswald. "Every one of these groups came to a bad end."

"Such as what?" asked Abigail.

"The Fraternitas Mysterium all perished in an earthquake except for one man, Friar Serra. The memoirs of a Captain Piedra record that the human members of the Aliazna Misterio were locked up by a cruel mayor and died in prison, an especially cruel mayor since the group consisted of the mayor's son, the son's fiance, and two of the son's other friends. And Stella Houston, one of the Mystery Gang, wrote in her autobiography that she lost more than half her group to an explosion."

"Lyke, it's a wee bit unlucky to try this," said Scotty. "We'd best not."

"I think we can avoid such fates if we follow a few simple guidelines," said Oswald. "I believe there may be supernatural forces behind all this, in general benevolent but punitive towards those who don't live up to the right standards. We can learn from the mistakes of those who went before us."

He went up to an easel that held a large blank sheet of paper, and wrote: "1. Purity of Purpose."

"All of them got into trouble when they tried to find a lost treasure, left buried by a group of conquistadors under Crystal Cove. The Fraternitas Mysterium succumbed to greed. One of them stole a diamond, and the hunt for that diamond caused the Alianza Misterio to cross the mayor.

"I have plenty of money, and all who join this group will be given a generous allowance, so greed should not be a factor for us."

"A generous allowance would be nice," said Scotty.

"Are there other compelling reasons to do this?" asked Abigail. "My interest is in research, not money."

Oswald said, "There are mysteries around the lost treasure, including a disk made using the lost science of alchemy that may have extraordinary powers. For one thing, the accounts say the monks discovered the ship of the conquistadors in good sailing condition even though 130 years had passed since it was last seen. Alchemy may have unlocked the secret of time travel. I wish to learn all I can about it. If we pursue this goal for the love of adventure and discovery, rather than greed, I believe we will be fine."

Oswald wrote a second line: "2. Loyalty to Friends."

"There was infighting among the failed groups that brought them to ruin. The explosion seems to have been caused when the talking bull, Tiny, became enraged at one of the other members and charged her while she was carrying nitroglycerin. The skunk, El Fuchi, also turned against his friends. There are hints that even the earthquake was no accident, but an explosion set by the donkey, Porto."

"How do you know that we won't fight?" asked Scotty.

"I have corresponded with all of you and I know we can be good friends," said Oswald.

"I'm giving your words a hearing even though they seem like nonsense, because I like you," said Abigail.

"So do I," said Marianne.

Oswald wrote a third line: "3. Avoiding Romantic Entanglements."

"That is just to be on the safe side. The Alianza Misterio got engaged as two couples before they got into trouble."

Marianne sighed at that one.

He wrote a fourth line: "4. Loveable Animal Mascot."

"The talking donkey, skunk, and bull of the three failed groups all had a few odious traits, but I have found a wonderful mascot for our group. You may come in now, Mr. Peaches."

A large orangutan wearing a small red fez pushed open a door at the side of the room and scampered to the front.

"Mr. Puh-puh-puh-Peaches!" he called out.

"Gott im Himmel!" said Abigail.

"Oh my," said Marianne.

"Egads!" said Scotty, "A likeable fellow, to be sure."

Mr. Peaches came over and shook his hand. Scotty smiled.

"Woooooh!" came a voice from above them. A hooded figure in glowing green floated down from a bannister at the back of the room and drifted above their heads. "Beware! I am the Green Ghost! Drop your valuables and flee!"

"Egads, a ghost!" cried Scotty. He jumped into Mr. Peaches' arms.

"Nonsense," said Abigail. She produced a pair of wire cutters from her pocket and attached them to a telescoping gripper. She reached up with the gripper and snipped something, and the Green Ghost fell to the floor. Mr. Peaches sat on him.

"What a silly prank, Oswald," she said. "Obviously he was gliding down on a thin, nearly-invisible wire."

"I told you, I arranged no pranks," said Oswald. "I'll call the hotel management and prove it."

The police soon arrived and arrested the culprit.

"Why, it's old Jacob Withers, who escaped from the local sanitarium a week ago. He's been terrorizing the neighborhood in his ghost disguise. You've done well," said the police officer.

"I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling... what do you call yourselves?" asked Withers.

"The Benevolent Lodge of Mystery," said Oswald P. Burlington.

"The grateful hotel would like to offer a banquet in your honor tonight," the manager told them.

"Lyke, a banquet is just what Mr. Peaches and I need, right Mr. Peaches?" said Scotty.

"Mr. Puh-puh-puh-Peaches!"

"It seems I have two converts. Are you convinced, Abigail and Marianne?" asked Oswald.

"I am not yet sure, but I think there may be something to this," said Abigail. "Unlocking the mysteries of a lost science... most intriguing."

"I must agree," said Marianne. "And the historical research will be fascinating."

"Then come, my friends. A lifetime of mysteries, adventures, and discoveries awaits!" said Oswald.


	10. 1911-1914, Benevolent Lodge

**Germany 1911**

"There it is!" said Oswald Birlington, pointing to an object in the glass case of an old curiosity shop in Cologne, Germany.

Mr. Peaches pointed to it also. "Mr. Puh-puh-puh-Peaches!"

The Benevolent Lodge of Mystery still looked the same after over thirty years of adventures. It was a beneficial side-effect of being a five-alchemical-element team that they barely seemed to age at all. The only difference was that now Scotty wore an adjustable monocle that Abigail made for him, which could be anything from a magnifier to a telescopic zoom lens.

They had gone round the world several times over, looking for alchemical artifacts of the Anunnaki. They had tea with Queen Victoria in 1890, escaped from China during the Boxer Rebellion of 1899, and gone on safari with Teddy Roosevelt in 1908. So far they had failed to locate any pieces of the Planispheric Disk, but they found a user's manual for it in Spain, written it by its maker, Bartimeo Magnus, the master alchemist to Holy Roman Emperor King Charles V.

They also found a genuine mask that had been worn by the Anunnaki Anubis, in France among the spoils captured by Napoleon when he invaded there. They had purchased a shaman's hut made of terror wood from the Amazon from the British Museum, and found numerous other books and artifacts over the years. And they had solved mystery after mystery, everywhere they went.

They were now in Germany because Abigail had been invited to join the new Kaiser Wilhelm Society for the promotion of scientific research. The artifact they had found this time was an old broken compass. Curiously, the pole ends were labeled with the words "Gut" and "Böse" instead of the normal red tip on the pole that points north.

"Good and evil," said Abigail. "The Moral Compass of the Krampus."

Marianne said, "I believe the Krampus is an Anunnaki, with advanced technology to detect good and evil. He is the opposite of Santa Claus – he punishes bad children, rather than giving presents to good ones. A moral entity, though a frightening one. This compass must be one that he broke and discarded."

"Lyke, what good is it if it's broken?" asked Scotty.

"Abigail, can you fix it?" Oswald asked. "It would allow us to solve cases faster so we can get on with our research."

"I think so, with the help of the alchemy books we found in Spain," said Abigail.

They bought the compass and headed back to their hotel.

* * *

That evening, Abigail told the others, "I have got it working."

"Excellent. We will have to guard it carefully so it doesn't fall into the wrong hands," said Oswald.

"I thought of that," Abigail said.

"What do you suggest?" asked Marianne.

"I put it in a new gold case with self-destruct mechanism, to disable the compass instantly if we are captured," said Abigail.

"Very good," said Oswald. "I will keep it on me at all times and be prepared to destroy it if necessary. This find is worth commemorating. Let's get a new group portrait painted with me holding the compass and I'll send it back to the Burlington Library to hang in the front hall."

* * *

**Russia, early 1914**

The team was in St. Petersburg, Russia, where they had managed to get hold of an indestructible piece of sailcloth, with "Cuarto Llave" on it, after solving the case of a haunting by someone pretending to be Koschei the Deathless. This was the end of a trip all over Europe: to Germany, Serbia, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, Britain, France, Belgium, and Romania.

Now Oswald was trying to get an audience with the Tsar so he could get permission to look at the hut of Baba Yaga, one of the artifacts in the royal storehouse.

A bearded man approached Oswald as he waited in an antechamber in front of a burning fireplace.

"I am Grigori Rasputin," the man said. "I am a holy man, a healer, and I have the ear of the Tsar because I have healed his son, Tsarevich Alexei. I will help you get access to the hut of Baba Yaga if you will give me something in return."

"Let me check something," said Oswald, drawing out the compass and pointing it towards Rasputin. The needle jumped and the evil pole pointed to him.

"Aha, that is exactly what I want," said Rasputin. "Give it to me!"

Oswald tossed a small stick of wood onto the fire and backed up. Rasputin came after him, but when he breathed in the smoke of the burning stick his eyes became wide and he ran away in terror.

"I thought a piece of terror wood might come in handy," thought Oswald to himself. He left the room so he could stop holding his breath.

The group decided to leave Russia before the healer could talk the Tsar into arresting them. Oswald put the incident into his journal to remind himself to try again later once things had cooled down.

* * *

**Burlington Library, July 1914**

They arrived by train at the Burlington Library using the special branch line Oswald had installed. It was July, but this high in the mountains there was always snow.

Mr. Peaches was carrying their sailcloth find, when he suddenly stopped and blew it up into the air. He caught it again a moment later.

"Why did you do that, Mr. Peaches?" asked Scotty.

Mr. Peaches shrugged.

They entered the Library. The caretaker, old Mr. Fluunk, was there to greet them.

"Welcome back, Sir. Here is your newspaper, Sir."

The headline read, "WAR IN EUROPE."

"Oh no!" said Oswald. "Austria-Hungary has invaded Serbia."

"Didn't you expect that?" asked Marianne.

"They have an excuse, since they thought Serbia was behind the assassination of their Archduke, Franz Ferdinand. But since they issued an ultimatum to Serbia to make a complete investigation, and Serbia agreed to it almost completely, I thought there would be a diplomatic solution," said Oswald.

"There is a lot of bad blood between those countries. They are spoiling for a fight," said Abigail. "They knew Serbia was behind the assassination. I told people high up in the government while we were there that Serbia was plotting such a thing."

"You told them? How did you know?" asked Oswald. He suddenly thought of something, and pulled out his Moral Compass. There was a scratch on the back of it that he knew he didn't make.

He opened the compass and pointed it toward Abigail. The evil pole twitched in her direction.

"What have you done?" he asked. "With all the alliances in Europe right now, Germany will have to come to the aid of Austria-Hungary; and Russia, France, and the United Kingdom will be pulled in on the other side. You may have contributed to the start of a world war."

He turned the compass all around, and in each case the needle twitched.

"Aye, she wasn't the only one. I asked Mr. Peaches to fetch me the compass while you slept, and I did a bit of spying for the sake of Irish independence. Lyke, I have relatives there," said Scotty.

"And I spied for the sake of France," said Marianne.

"It has happened," said Oswald. "Corruption has finally caught up with us after all these years. I must ask you to get back on the train and leave at once. The Benevolent Lodge of Mystery is dead."

He pressed the self-destruct button on the Moral Compass and threw the ruined artifact into the fire.

"Mr. Puh-puh-puh-Peaches?"

"You stay, of course. But I'm very disappointed in you. You've betrayed me, too."

Mr. Peaches hung his head.

Next morning, Oswald Birlington looked in the mirror and saw his hair had suddenly become gray.

He ran to find Mr. Peaches. It was too late. Orangutans can live up to 50 years in captivity, but the sudden shock of the years catching up to him had been too much.

Oswald sank to his knees beside his old friend, weeping.


	11. Crystal Cove, 1926, Fellowship

**Crystal Cove, 1926**

"You have a visitor, Sir," said the old caretaker, Mr. Fluunk.

A withered old man sat at a table in one of the reading rooms of the Burlington Library. A large man stood at the door with the caretaker. He was in late middle age with white hair, a mustache, and spectacles.

"Come in, come in. I don't get many visitors these days, but the Library is open to everyone at all times," said the old man.

"Mr. Burlington?" asked the other man. "I'm Cletus Darrow, Junior. I believe you knew my father?"

"Yes, I knew the founder of Crystal Cove, the senior Cletus Darrow. I wrote to him often when I was researching the history of the town," said Burlington.

"He passed away recently, and in going through his papers I found some of your letters. They sparked my curiosity," said Darrow. "You asked him all sorts of questions, about conquistadors and cowgirls and such-like."

"Yes, I have an intense interest in the history of Crystal Cove." said Burlington.

"And apparently in mystery-solving groups of four people and a talking animal. You asked if he knew of any more than the three you found," said Darrow.

"There was one more," said Burlington. "I founded it myself. Perhaps you've heard of the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery?"

"A little," said Darrow. "Would you share your experiences with me?"

"Why do you want to know?" asked Burlington.

"I'm starting one with myself, my wife Petunia, our two children Gladis and Danny, and our talking cat named Whiskers. We're the Mystery Fellowship."

Burlington gave a start and looked at him narrowly. "Do you know what you're doing? It can end badly if there's any disloyalty or fighting in the group."

"We're a close-knit family. We're devoted to each other," said Darrow.

"Then you're very fortunate, and it may work out for you. I thought my group was the best of friends, but we came from different countries, and national loyalties got between us in the end," said Burlington.

"What happened then?" asked Darrow.

"I disbanded the group, and it cost the life of my dear friend, our orangutan mascot, Mr. Peaches. Every day I place a fresh peach on his memorial to make amends. It was his favorite food," said Burlington.

"I'm sorry to hear that," said Darrow. "I hope we don't make the same mistakes."

"Have you had any strange cases with disguised villains yet?" asked Burlington.

"Just last week a neighbor was troubled by two characters from _Alice in Wonderland_ come to life, the Mad Hatter and the March Hare," said Darrow. "We were able to identify them as disgruntled employees, their gardener and cook."

"Then you're on your way, for better or worse. The best of luck to you," said Burlington.

"I hope you'll give us some tips," said Darrow.

"I've kept this place open in the hope that one day a worthy successor would appear. You could be the one. There are bigger mysteries than just these fake monster cases, and someone should be carrying on that investigation," said Burlington.

"Yes?" asked Darrow.

"First, there are strange forces at work getting ordinary miscreants to dress themselves as monsters. Second, there's a conquistador's treasure buried beneath Crystal Cove. Third, and by far the most important, there's a Planispheric Disk connected with powerful secrets of alchemy," said Burlington.

"That's too much to take in at once. Let us keep meeting and talk about this further," said Darrow.

On his return home, he told the family about Burlington's revelations. They all immediately became fascinated with the treasure and the Disk. Searching the cellars revealed a way down to a system of caves directly below their house. Darrow sent for digging supplies, including dynamite, from the Darrow Mining Company he had inherited from his father.

Over the next few months Mr. Darrow and Mr. Burlington met regularly and became good friends. Burlington shared amazing tales of his adventures with the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery. Darrow told amusing stories of what his children were doing, and of his work in setting up a new university, which did not yet have a final site picked out.

Burlington said, "I set up this library to be open forever, but I will change my will so that if it should ever have to close then everything will go to Darrow University."

"Thank you, that is most generous," said Darrow.

"You can have everything but my vault in the government archives stored at the Crystal Cove Library," said Burlington. "There are secrets there I don't want the world to know."

"I see," said Darrow.

Seeing his disappointment, Burlington added, "I have a lead for you that the Lodge never followed up. You might want to look into the source of the alligators of Gatorsburg."

"That's a strange town," said Darrow. "Inspired by my father's success in finding gold here, prospectors went looking nearby. Three miles from here they found not gold but a veritable well of alligators. Gatorsburg has prospered from 'gator hide goods every since."

Burlington said, "It's worth investigating, don't you agree?"

* * *

Darrow drove to Gatorsburg, and spent the day looking for an entrance to underground caves. Finally he found a passage that had not been used by man since the day that Rodriguez went there centuries ago.

Three huge descendents of the original talking alligators were there, along with their numerous non-talking brethren. They closed in on Darrow.

"Human, why are you here?" one of them hissed.

Darrow stared open-mouthed. His tongue felt dry and no words would come.

"Let's eat him. Humans are our enemies, harvesting our people for their hides," said another.

"Their greed is decimating us," said the third. "This is not what our ancestors agreed to when they took on the task of guarding the Piece."

"If we eat this human we will still be hunted from above. But if we void the agreement and give him the Piece..."

"Then we can close the portal and live in our own world in safety."

"Here, human," said the leading gator. "We declare the agreement between our races null and void, and give the task of guarding these objects back to you."

The gators pushed forward a flat piece of metal and a pistol. They withdrew, and Darrow saw a glowing circle between himself and them begin to shrink.

"Beware the fate of the last mortals to hold such Pieces. I smell a cat on your clothing. Is it a talking cat?"

"Y-yes..." said Darrow, not daring to refuse to answer.

"It will be corrupted and betray you, as the donkey did before. The cat dies!"

The circle of light became a pin-prick and the world of the gators was gone.

Darrow picked up the Piece and the old flintlock pistol and ran back through the caves as fast as his legs would carry him.

All that remained behind was the unquiet spirits of the two original talking alligators, compelled to haunt Gatorsburg forever in recompense for their broken agreement.

* * *

Darrow set off for the Burlington Library.

"Look!" he cried, laying his find before Burlington.

"At last!" said Burlington. "We went all over the world looking for these pieces and there was one under our noses all the time." He reached out his hand to touch the Piece.

"No, it's mine! I found it fair and square," said Darrow, grabbing the Piece back.

A strange look came over old Burlington's face and he grabbed for the piece. Darrow shoved him back and Burlington fell, striking his head on the corner of the table. He lay still.

After Darrow checked him and found no pulse, he called: "Mr. Fluunk, help! Mr. Burlington has fallen down."

* * *

Darrow decided not to tell his family about the Piece immediately. He felt it was important that there be no connection made between Burlington's death and his discovery of the Piece.

Later that week, he went to the government archives in the Crystal Cove Library at night and broke into Burlington's vault. He set a fire to cover the theft of the documents. In his haste to get out of the building he dropped one thing: the piece of sailcloth that Burlington had brought back from Russia. It got mixed in with books from the library in the aftermath of the fire.

He went to the warehouse where things for the future university were stored and placed the stolen documents in the Darrow Family Archives trunk for later examination.

The next day was Halloween. Darrow got a picture taken with the kids in their Halloween costumes outside the house by a professional photographer. Gladis was dressed as Cleopatra and Danny was dressed as Abraham Lincoln.

Whiskers was at their feet. Without realizing he spoke it aloud, Darrow stared at the animal and whispered, "The cat dies."

Whiskers ran before the picture was taken. The fat white cat hid in the cellar trying to decide what to do. Something was working in his mind, playing on his fears. Cletus wanted to kill him. Maybe he should act first...

That evening, before the children went off trick-or-treating, Darrow told his family, "I have something to show you."

Danny was building a cabin with his Lincoln logs, getting into his role as Honest Abe. Gladis was watching him with amusement.

Darrow went into the next room and got out the flintlock pistol he had hidden in a drawer. He looked it over very carefully. When he looked at the flint under a magnifying glass he noticed the words "Primero Llave" engraved on it in tiny letters.

He took the flintlock pistol to show the family. "Look at this!" On impulse, he used the spark from the flint to light a candle. At the same time, Whiskers was lighting a fuse to the dynamite below the house.

Prudence said, "No, Cletus! I know you love to build up your father's collection of antique weapons, but I draw the line at firearms. I will not have that thing in the house with the children."

"Very well, I'll let the butler deal with it," said Cletus.

He went into the next room and rang for the butler. "Joseph, I want this hidden in a secure place, one that I can identify but that will mean nothing to anyone else. Let me see... I know, buy a grave site at the Gatorsburg Cemetery in the name of Señor Primero Llave. Bury the pistol in an empty coffin. Gatorsburg will be a ghost town soon, anyway. That reminds me. Call my broker tomorrow and arrange to sell short 1000 shares of Gatorsburg Products stock. I don't think they will be in business much longer."

"Yes Sir," said Joseph. "Will there be anything else, Sir?"

"That will be all, and you may take the rest of the night off," said Darrow.

"All the other servants are off for Halloween, Sir. Are you sure you don't require anything more?"

"We'll be fine," said Darrow. It was just as well that the family would be alone. He didn't want nosy servants to see his precious Piece.

He returned to the family and finally showed them the Piece. "Look at this. This may be the most precious and powerful thing in the world, and I found it."

The effect of this speech was instantaneous. All of the others looked greedily at the Piece.

"It should be mine," said Petunia.

"No, mine," said Gladis.

"My Precious," said Danny.

They began to fight over it, so terribly that a little girl who came trick-or-treating ran screaming away from the house.

It was good that she did, because that is when Whiskers' fuse caught the dynamite and the whole house dropped underground.

A fat white cat ran off into the night in the opposite direction from the trick-or-treater.


	12. 1929-1969, Pericles

**Bavaria, 1929**

Pericles was an unhappy fledgling. Christmas was coming, but he had nothing to look forward to. He had been sold from a Munich pet shop, where he had been comfortable, to the home of two very naughty boys. They teased him and pulled his tail feathers. Protesting just encouraged them to do it more.

The night before Christmas, a creature was stirring in the house, much larger than a mouse. Pericles woke when he heard a rough voice saying, "You two have been naughty and must be punished. You have tormented your pet and now you will learn what it feels like."

Pericles realized what was happening; the children were getting a much-deserved visit from the Krampus. He was being avenged. He fell back asleep to the soothing sounds of their screams of fear and pain.

The Krampus came to the cage of the sleeping parrot. "Little one, I must do something for you, lest the children take revenge on you tomorrow. I will unlock the full potential of the Anunnaki heritage you carry."

The Krampus touched his head gently. Pericles didn't awaken, but stirred in his sleep.

Early in the morning, Pericles found that he was now so intelligent that it was child's play to escape from his cage.

"Perhaps I should pay the boys a little visit before I leave..."

* * *

**Bavaria, 1932**

Pericles had been living on the streets for two years, supporting himself by petty crimes. It wasn't an easy life, but his intelligence made it possible to earn enough to get by and to stay ahead of the police.

A gray-haired woman listening intently on the edge of a political rally looked like an easy target. He swooped in to snatch her purse, only to find himself netted by a mechanical trap and pulled inside the purse.

The woman walked briskly away from the crowd and into a nearby alley.

"Criminal parrot, I've been trying to track you down for days and now I've got you," said the woman.

"Why are you hunting me?" asked Pericles.

"I miss the old days when I helped solve unusual crimes all the time," said the woman. "I am Frau Gluck, former member of the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery."

"I am Pericles, the most intelligent parrot in the world."

"You are audacious to boast so. Now we go to the police," said Frau Gluck.

"A moment, Frau Gluck, and I will give you some pointers for your next trap. Your net has insufficient tension in its knots, and the purse spring mechanism is easily overridden, like this."

The purse sprang open and Pericles was free. He fluttered out of reach. "Goodbye, Frau Gluck."

Frau Gluck laughed. "You are indeed clever, Pericles. Please stay. I am lonely for intelligent conversation."

"As am I," said Pericles. "I will stay for a few minutes, as long as there is no more talk of the police."

Minutes turned to hours, then days, as the two discovered they were kindred spirits and became friends. She gave him rides on her motorcycle and told him of her days with the Lodge.

"Since that time I have continued my research and learned even more about the Planispheric Disk," Frau Gluck told him. "It was used to trap an Anunnaki, a powerful spirit."

"I believe I encountered an Anunnaki once," said Pericles. "My increased mental capability may have been his gift to me."

Frau Gluck said, "That is nothing compared to the potential of this trapped spirit. A time of planetary alignment is coming, called Nibiru, when that being will be at its most powerful. If all the pieces of the Planispheric Disk could be found and reassembled by then, it could be released. Whoever did that would share its power."

"Is that what you intend to do?" asked Pericles.

"No, it is not practical for me alone. One of the pieces was lost underwater when the old town of Crystal Cove fell into the sea. I will instead offer my services to the National Socialist party of Germany. Their great leader, Adolph Hitler, plans to restore Germany to greatness. I will make war robots for him. I already have the designs written up."

"You are setting your aims too low, Frau Gluck. Could your robots be modified to work under water?"

"Why yes, so they could," said Frau Gluck.

"Then use them to recover the lost piece. I will help you find the others. We can free the entity and rule the world together," said Pericles.

"I will do it, but for you to be my helper you will need more education. To be a street-smart escape artist will not be enough. I will use my influence to get you admitted to the University of Munich," said Frau Gluck. "I will move to America and get started on the search while you study."

"Will your husband be willing to relocate with you?" asked Pericles.

"I'm not married and never have been. I call myself 'Frau' rather than 'Fraulein' because it is easier. It seems unfair to me that woman must reveal their married status in their title and men do not have to," said Frau Gluck.

Pericles did well in the academic world, studying mathematics, astronomy, chemistry, languages, and ancient history. Soon he earned the title of Professor. He learned all he could of the occult sciences as well.

He kept in touch with Frau Gluck, but her search was going slowly and her health was failing. His own astronomical calculations showed him the Nibiru event would not occur in her lifetime. He needed a new plan. He must bring together a group like her Benevolent Lodge of Mystery. It seemed from what he had learned that only a member, or a former member, of such a group could actually free the entity.

* * *

**Crystal Cove, 1969**

Pericles watched the six-year-old boy playing in the yard by himself with a toy bulldozer. He was not playing with friends, so he was probably lonely. Judging by what Pericles could see from the window into the boy's room, he was interested in birds, flight, and space exploration. That was very promising. He would bond with this boy, and collect a group of suitable friends. By the time of Nibiru they would be a capable group of mystery-solving adults, ready to help him get to the entity and free it. Then he would have ultimate power.

Pericles launched himself headfirst into the tree in the boy's front yard, then lay half-stunned, but not as completely disabled as he appeared to be.

He gave one warning squawk when the boy picked him up, warning the boy to be gentle and to win his trust.

He was in.


	13. Crystal Cove, 1979, Incorporated I

**Crystal Cove, 1979**

"Hey, cats and chicks, dig this. I wrote us a theme song."

Ricky Owens sat at the keyboard of his home-tweaked Minimoog. Professor Pericles flew to his shoulder and the rest of the gang gathered around.

Ricky played a slow melody and sang, "Myst-er-y Inc. comes to the res-cue. / When there's a clue we know what to do."

"Far out, Ricky," said Cassidy Williams, moving in close behind him.

"Groovy, huh? Like, I call it 'Mystery Incorporated to the Rescue'," said Ricky.

"Ricky, nobody says 'groovy' any more. That's square," said Brad Chiles.

"Brad, obsolete slang is my dear Ricky's trademark. It is all right for him to, as they say, step to the music of a different drummer," said Professor Pericles.

Ricky smiled at this.

Judy Reeves said, "I like the tune. I think we should get lockets shaped like magnifying glasses, with little music boxes in them that would play it when they opened."

"I will construct the musical boxes if you obtain the jewelry for them," said Professor Pericles.

"Custom jewelry is big bucks," said Ricky doubtfully.

"We can afford it," said Brad. "Your dad is a high-level electronics engineer. My old man is a banker, Cassidy's folks are in real estate, and Judy's mom is a broker."

"The jeweler we helped with the bogus Blacula case would do it," said Cassidy. "He owes us for saving his store."

"But not lockets for the dudes," said Brad.

"Yeah, but we can get you matching lapel pins," said Judy. "And inside the lockets can be pictures of us with our guys. One with you and me for mine, and one with Ricky and Cassidy for her."

Ricky blushed and Cassidy looked down shyly.

"It's cool, we know you dig each other," said Judy.

"As much as we two do, as friends," said Brad.

Judy gave a little sigh.

* * *

"For real, maybe we should call the local Smokey to handle this," said Ricky, looking nervously around the shadowy condemned church.

"Ricky's right. That thing didn't look exactly human. It had horns!" said Cassidy.

"The real question is, did we chase it here, or were we led here on purpose?" asked Pericles.

There was a rush of something moving fast overhead across one of the beams. Pericles started flying after it.

"Professor Pericles!" Ricky called.

Normally the parrot was as cautious about danger as he was, flying fast away from monsters as Ricky ran, leading the monsters into Brad and Judy's traps. But this time Pericles was flying high up where Ricky couldn't help him if the thing grabbed him.

Ricky stepped onto the keys of the old organ, which miraculously still played, bringing a loud and harsh discord. Ricky began to climb the organ pipes, which bent under his weight and the whole thing came crashing down, barely missing the others.

Pericles flew back down. "False alarm. It was just a possum. Mmm, delicious."

Ricky thought Pericles was probably kidding, but he couldn't be sure. Both he and Pericles seemed to have huge appetites these days, and the bird ate meat like he was channeling a large beast of prey.

"Sorry," said Ricky. Then he noticed a roll of paper among the fallen pipes. "Woah, far out! What's that?"

Brad unrolled the paper and they all saw a round diagram covered with cryptic symbols.

"What is this?" Brad asked.

"I don't know," said Pericles. "But I can't wait to find out."

* * *

"This is going to require some study," said Fred Jones, the college history student the gang consulted about the document. "I'm going to work on it here in my office; it'll probably be an all-nighter."

He gave a significant glance over Ricky's shoulder as he said this.

Later that night, after Ricky was asleep, Professor Pericles flew back.

"Professor Pericles, I've read some of your published work," said Jones. "You're a noted historian and scientist. What are you doing playing around as a kid's pet?"

"I have grown weary of playacting for these _kinder_," said Pericles. "I do not need them anymore. Now I will have you. If you are willing to go into partnership with me."

"You know what this is as well as I do, don't you?" asked Jones. "They thought it was a treasure map."

"Of course. It is a diagram of a Planispheric Disk," said Pericles. "And in a way they were correct. It will lead to a stupendous treasure, but the real object must be found first."

"I will help you, of course. But what will you do about the kids?" said Jones.

"They will never bother anyone again, once we are through with them," said Pericles.

The two slapped hands, or rather, slapped a hand and a wing.

* * *

The group continued their investigation over the next few weeks. Fred Jones told them about the Disk pieces, and Cassidy found in old records an eyewitness account of the little girl who was trick-or-treating the last night the Darrows were seen alive.

"She said she saw them fighting over something shaped like a slice of pie, but flat and metallic," said Cassidy.

"We need to try to get down into the ruins of the old Darrow mansion," said Brad.

"Like, creepsville," said Ricky.

They found a way down through an old chimney and poked around for several hours but found nothing.

"This seems to be a waste of time," said Professor Pericles at last.

He had heard someone moving around and spying on them, but thought it would be better to return later with Fred Jones, heavily armed and prepared to use lethal force.

* * *

Pericles carefully used Judy's locket to open the box on top of the heap of skulls and bones. He had found this place partly by calculation, partly by elimination, by consulting with Jones and finding a section of the caves Jones had missed in his months of secret searching and mapping.

"I don't understand. There are six pieces. Where are the other five?" Pericles lied. He had only expected to find one piece in this location.

"Maybe they're underneath," said Judy, grabbing the piece.

When a trap trigger popped up, Pericles could have bitten her in frustration. They fled from the gushing water and from spears that shot from the walls.

But as Pericles looked back he had a little smile. They were fleeing towards the place Jones had agreed to ambush the gang as the Freak of Crystal Cove.

The gang got out of the water and stood panting on a rock. Judy started to look at the piece, but Pericles got control of it, as planned, so the Freak could see for sure that they had found it.

"Good job, Judy. Now all we need is the other five pieces and the treasure is..."

"Mine!" shouted the Freak. "I am the Freak of Crystal Cove, guardian of the curse!"

Pericles flew up as if startled and dropped the piece back down to Judy.

The Freak leaped and landed waving a curved sword, and the gang ran back into the caves. The monster cornered them and raised his sword high.

"From six to one the spell is spun. / No time to run. / The curse begun!"

"You can't take us all," Brad said. "We'll fight for our lives. You're outnumbered."

"A sword is not the only way / The Freak can harm your lives today," chanted the monster.

He tossed papers to the ground. "Leave this town without fail / Or your parents go to jail. / And the Piece / You must release."

"What are you talking about?" asked Cassidy.

The Freak pointed at the papers. "Williams: fraud. Reeves: insider trading. Chiles: embezzlement. Owens: industrial espionage."

Each picked up the papers accusing their parents. They seemed very real, full of details only someone who knew the families well could have obtained.

"Disappear or your families pay / Mystery Inc. is dead today!" said the Freak.

Judy handed over the Piece and they retreated from the threatening figure, and made their way along the rocks to a deserted beach.

"I'm not convinced," said Cassidy. "It's got to be a crook in a suit. It always is. The evidence could be fake."

"Like, I think this one's real. That monster's been in my dreams," said Ricky. "Bigger and uglier, in rooms with red curtains and black-and-white floors."

"Yours too? I thought it was just me," said Judy.

"I've seen the monster in my dreams too, in the same kind of place," said Brad.

"Red curtains, zig-zag striped floors?" asked Cassidy. All nodded.

The group shivered.

"I don't understand how it's possible," said Cassidy. "We've all seen the monster from a distance before , but we've never all seen a place like that except in our dreams."

"Like, it's possible because it's a real demon and a real curse," said Ricky.

"And to be able to get all that stuff out of nowhere, about all our families, when nobody even knew we were going to be here? " said Brad.

"We have to do what it says," said Judy. "Walk up the road to the next town, and each get a bus out of here."

"We can't take the Enigma Engine?" asked Ricky.

"We have to leave it where it is, at the entrance to the caves. We start over with nothing but the clothes on our backs and the money in our pockets," said Cassidy.

"I'm sticking with you, Judy," said Brad.

"Thank you, Brad," said Judy.

"I have a friend I can hide out with, out of state," said Cassidy. "Maybe she can get me a job. She works at a radio station."

"I'll make money," said Ricky. "One way or another. When I have enough I'll send for you, Cassidy. All right?"

"Yes, Ricky," said Cassidy.

"We'll find a way to make money with our trapping skills, right Judy?"

"Our excellent trapping skills, Brad."

"Thank you, Judy. Our excellent trapping skills."

"Like, this is not what we expected, but we know what we're going to do today," said Ricky.

He looked around.

"Hey! Where's Pericles?"

* * *

Fred Jones stood over Professor Pericles near the ruined church. He had chloroformed the parrot, and Pericles had damaged one eye in the fall.

Jones played back the message he had recorded on his cassette player one more time to check it.

"I have grown weary of playacting for these _kinder. _I do not need them anymore... They will never bother anyone again..."

He would call the police hotline and play the anonymous message to implicate Pericles in the disappearance of the kids.

He was sure Pericles would get solitary confinement in the Crystal Cove Animal Asylum for the Criminally Insane. Just where he belonged... in a cage.


	14. Crystal Cove, 1981, Brad and Judy

**Crystal Cove, 1981**

Brad and Judy shared the motel-room phone back and forth as they telephoned an old friend.

"Hi, Fred Jones? This is Brad."

"And Judy. We're back."

"I'm a bit surprised to hear from you," said Jones. "I thought you went missing in the caves."

"We disappeared a couple of years ago because of a threat that our parents would be arrested if we stayed, but all of a sudden we got to thinking..." said Brad.

"Let our parents fend for themselves," said Judy. "If they did the crimes they should do the time."

"I see," said Jones.

"We need your help," said Brad.

"To pick up again on the treasure hunt," said Judy.

"Right, to pick up again on the treasure hunt. Thank you, Judy," said Brad.

"You're welcome, Brad," said Judy.

There was a loud crying in the background and Judy said, "Oh sorry, I have to pick up the baby."

"You have a baby?" asked Jones.

"Yes, he's an adorable little guy," said Brad. "We named him after you."

"You did?" said Jones.

"Fred Sternum," said Brad. "We took a new cover name for our work."

"You were one of the nicest people to us in Crystal Cove," said Judy, getting the phone back as she cradled the infant in one arm.

"Even though the treasure hunt didn't work out last time, at least it brought us together. We got married and we're starting to make a success of our business as trappers," said Brad.

"So now we'd like to try again," said Judy.

"To find the treasure," said Brad.

"Right, to find the treasure. Thank you, Brad."

"You're welcome, Judy."

"Does anyone else know you're here?" asked Jones.

"Not yet," said Brad. "I'm not sure my old man will be glad to see me."

"On account of him probably getting arrested and all," said Judy. "Same with my mom."

"Where are you now?" asked Jones.

"At a cheap place called the No Tell Motel on Lurker Lane," said Brad. "We're in room 13."

"Stay where you are. I'll be right over," said Jones.

Brad and Judy put little Fred down for a nap and sat together watching television, waiting for Jones to arrive.

The door smashed open and it was the Freak of Crystal Cove. Waving his sword to keep them back, he ran to the bed and scooped up Fred before the parents could react. He backed out the door, holding the blade to show he would cut the child if they tried to stop him.

When they ran to the door a moment later, there was no sign of the Freak or their son.

Then the telephone rang in the room. Judy answered it.

"This is Fred Jones. I've decided not to come over there after all."

"Fred, you've got to help us. The Freak took our child!" Judy said.

"Your son will be all right. The Freak will bring the boy to me. In my historical research I learned of a charm that can control it."

"Thank heavens!" said Judy.

"You don't understand. I sent the Freak to you," said Jones.

"What?" said Brad, who had come close to the phone to listen.

"I want the treasure for myself and I don't want you in the way. The boy will be my hostage for your good behavior. If you don't leave town immediately without telling anyone, he will come to bodily harm."

"You can't do this to us! We'll hunt you down, you bastard!" said Brad. "We'll trap you and get our son back."

"If anything happens to me, the Freak will deal with your child," said Jones.

"No!" cried Judy. "Please don't let the monster hurt him."

"I'll take good care of the boy if you stay away, I promise. I'll raise him as my own son," said Jones. "After all, he's named after me."

Fred Jones hung up his new 30-ounce portable cell phone and cut off their cries.

He picked up the still-sleeping child and moved out of his place of concealment, the dried up swimming pool next to the motel.

"Let's go home, Fred Jones, Jr.," he said.

* * *

Back in the hotel, Brad and Judy looked at each other. Then they burst out laughing.

"Well done. He fell for it," said Brad. "I knew he had to be the Freak. I don't know how he managed the dream stuff, but it doesn't matter."

"We unloaded the rug rat on him. That brat was going to hold back our career," said Judy.

"We've given Jones a long-term weakness," said Brad. "While we get stronger all the time. We'll be back when we're ready."

"Sternum and Sternum are the best trappers," said Brad.

"The best in the business, Brad."

"Thank you, Judy. The best in the business."

"You're welcome, Brad."


	15. Crystal Cove, 1998, Ricky and Cassidy

**Crystal Cove 1998**

Cassidy Williams was escorted into the private lair of Ricky Owens at the lowest level of the Destroido Corporation by Ed Machine, the CEO. Ricky Owens sat in front of a bank of TV monitors, watching what was going on all over Crystal Cove with his hidden cameras. All around the inner island was a moat filled with sharks.

Ricky stood up. Cassidy ran to him and gave him a hug and a kiss.

"Cassidy, my angel, you're as lovely as ever," said Ricky.

"Ricky, darling. You've... changed some," said Cassidy.

"I've put on a little weight," Ricky said.

"If you've kept eating like you did when you were a teenager, no wonder," Cassidy said. "I don't care about that. You're still the man I fell in love with... At least I hope you are."

"What do you mean?" said Ricky.

"This company, the pollution, the terrible products. Is this really all yours, or is Mr. Machine here in charge?" asked Cassidy.

"Ed is the public face of Destroido, but he reports directly to me. I make all the real decisions. I pay you enough that you'll do anything I require of you, right Ed?"

Ed Machine nodded. "Yes sir, Mr. E."

"Mr. E?" asked Cassidy.

"An alias I use. I want to stay completely incognito," said Ricky.

"When you said you would send for me when you made enough money, I wasn't expecting it to take so long. You're a multimillionaire. "

"Multi-billionaire," said Ricky.

"Wouldn't less have been enough?" asked Cassidy.

"I had to have enough wealth and power to keep us safe. Destroido is big enough now that it's a law unto itself. Nothing can touch us," said Ricky.

"Nothing would want to," Cassidy muttered.

"Not true," said Ricky. "We have enemies. Especially Fred Jones. He's Mayor of Crystal Cove now, and he seems to have the Sheriff in his pocket."

"You're sure he was involved in betraying us?" Cassidy asked.

"I'm positive," said Ricky. "He was the Freak of Crystal Cove. He conspired with Pericles and they forged the documents that drove us out of town."

"I'm not convinced. I still think it was supernatural. What about the nightmares?" Cassidy asked.

"Probably hypnosis, or some device that Pericles created," said Ricky.

"You know Pericles was involved?" asked Cassidy.

"I got hold of a copy of the tape that was used as evidence to put him away," said Ricky. "The words may have been taken out of context, but it was clear he was plotting to betray us. He can rot in the Asylum for all I care."

"Why did he do it?" asked Cassidy.

"He was after the treasure. As Jones is now. But we'll get it first," said Ricky.

"We shouldn't go after the treasure. There's something evil about it," said Cassidy.

"I know. My research shows it could annihilate Crystal Cove. That's why we have to get to it first, to destroy it before it falls into the wrong hands," said Ricky.

"If I was sure our hands were the right ones..." said Cassidy.

"We're the best we've got. We'll have to do," said Ricky.

"Unfortunately true," said Cassidy. "Could we get Brad and Judy involved?"

"No. I tried, but they refuse to do anything as long as Fred Jones is here. I think he's blackmailing them somehow. They haven't always stayed on the right side of the law in their career as trappers and bounty hunters."

"Have you?" asked Cassidy.

"I'm smarter than they are and better at covering my tracks," said Ricky.

"Yeah, that's true," said Cassidy. "You've always been smart."

"I need you for an important mission, Cassidy," Ricky said. "You've become a radio DJ with a stage name, right?"

Cassidy tilted her head and put her hands on her hips, "Angel Dynamite, comin' at ya with a blast of rock 'n roll."

"Are you good at acting?" Ricky asked.

"You mean lying? Yes, I'm good at it. I haven't told the whole truth to anyone in years. Having to disappear as a teenager will do that to you," said Cassidy.

"You're speaking to one who knows," said Ricky. "Anyway, Mayor Jones has a teenage son."

"Really? Who would marry him?" asked Cassidy.

"He's not married. It seems to have been a hush-hush affair and the woman left him to raise the child alone years ago. I haven't been able to trace her," said Ricky.

"So what's happening with the son?" asked Cassidy.

"He's formed a group of close friends, and I need you to befriend them and keep an eye on them for me," said Ricky.

"You think they're up to no good?" asked Cassidy.

"On the contrary, they're solving mysteries the way we used to do. History is repeating itself. I did some research at the Burlington Library and found a pattern in this town's history. A group of people starts solving mysteries, then comes to a bad end once they start investigating the cursed treasure."

"Wild," said Cassidy. "Why would that be?"

"I don't know, but it could easily happen to this group. If they get on the trail of the cursed treasure, or what Jones did, he will destroy them like he did us."

"Can't we warn them?" asked Cassidy.

"No. The boy would never believe us. He would go to his father, and that would be a disaster. Promise me, you can't reveal who you really are, and under no circumstances tell anyone in the group our suspicions of Mayor Jones."

"All right, I promise," said Cassidy.

"I've set up a new radio station for you, through a shell company so nobody will associate it with Destroido. You can offer the kids a part-time job there, and then win their friendship. There is a room they could use for a mystery-solving headquarters," said Ricky.

"That sounds do-able," said Cassidy. "Though I don't like spying on kids. I guess it's all right since I'll be trying to protect them."

"You've completed the martial arts training I set up for you?" asked Ricky. "Just in case of trouble?"

"I can handle anything the Freak might dish out," said Cassidy. "A music disk in my hands is a deadly weapon, so I'll always have ammunition on hand at the station."

"Very good," said Ricky. "We won't get to see each other much once this gets started. We'll have to communicate by covert channels. But, could you stay tonight for dinner?"

"Ricky... I don't think that's a good idea. The romance angle... it just isn't going to work between us."

"It's because of my weight, isn't it?" asked Ricky.

"It's not that. That's just a symptom. You've changed so much. You're so cold and cynical now. The guy I fell in love with just isn't there any more."

"Well, I can't say I feel the same way about you as I used to, either. I used to love your wide-eyed idealism. Now you just seem naïve."

"I don't think you're as over me as you say," said Cassidy.

"I don't think you're completely over me, either," said Ricky.

"Well, we're just going to have to get there. Because it isn't happening," said Cassidy.

"You'll still do the mission for me?" asked Ricky.

"I'm working with you, not for you," said Cassidy. "But I will."

"All right then. Ed will show you out and get you started at the station," said Ricky.

"Goodbye, Mr. E."

"Goodbye, Angel Dynamite."


	16. Crystal Cove, Present, Incorporated II

**Crystal Cove, KGHOUL**

"You're all doomed!" came the voice on the call-in line.

"Like, uh, like who, who is this?" asked Shaggy.

"You can call me Mr. E," said the voice. "You should never have brought that locket out of the cave. You don't know what you've uncovered."

Daphne said, "Uncovered? Uncovered what?"

"A truth that should have should have remained hidden, the truth behind the curse of Crystal Cove," said Mr. E. "The real mystery has just begun."

Angel Dynamite realized this was the point of no return. She had been a friend of the gang for years and come to genuinely care for them. She had seen the locket and said nothing. If she didn't speak up now and tell them what she knew about Mr. E, and the truth came out later, then they would never trust her again. They would ask her why she hadn't spoken up before, and she would have no answer.

Her promise to Mr. E kept her silent.

Scooby-Doo said solemnly: "Scooby. Dooby. Doo."

* * *

**Crystal Cove Animal Asylum for the Criminally Insane**

"Mystery Incorporated to the Rescue," said Professor Pericles, as the gang stood before Scooby-Doo's cell in the Asylum.

He couldn't have heard the little music box in the locket from behind the vault door, but somehow he had. They couldn't have heard his words, but somehow they did. Pericles had secrets. Even though he was locked up in a tightly-sealed room, under soundproof glass, and in a straightjacket, he was still in communication with the Entity below Crystal Cove.

Officer Johnson was amazed that Pericles had spoken, so he opened the vault door and ran into the room.

Velma nattered on about how it wasn't uncommon for parrots to talk, but Johnson explained, "It's incredible because it's the first words he's spoken in years. He belonged to those kids who disappeared in the caves."

"You mean, this was the parrot who belonged to the original Mystery Incorporated?" asked Daphne.

Pericles chuckled. "I trust you enjoyed their little theme song."

As Officer Johnson warned the gang against him, Pericles focused his mind on the man. He was in the Entity's favor because he was willing to release it, and it had granted him a small power increase as an incentive. He was strong enough now to knock down a large man. He could also influence weaker minds without their realizing it.

Johnson pulled a roll of duct tape from his pocket. His left hand worked rapidly on his right hand and arm.

"Officer Johnson is quite correct. Now please step aside, Officer Johnson, to free your hand, which mysteriously has become duct-taped to your stun gun," said Pericles.

Johnson tried to get the taser off his hand and ended up stunning himself and falling to the floor.

"Clues await you. Clues that will lead you to the cursed secret that feeds on Crystal Cove," said Pericles.

"What secret?" asked Daphne.

"I am sure you will find out. Meanwhile, I will dispense this piece of advice: beware of those closest to you. I am specifically talking to you, Frederick."

After Johnson ushered the visitors out, Pericles pondered. Nibiru was coming soon. The entity had created this case, which would facilitate his escape from the asylum, and then there would be a race to get the pieces of the Planispheric disk and the four keys. Pericles was confident he would win. Nobody knew more about the pieces than he did, or would be more ruthless about obtaining them.

The gang didn't know how much they were a part of the curse themselves. The five-alchemical-element groups the Entity called "Children of Nibiru" did not age as long so they stayed together. This new group had been in operation for over a decade. The Entity covered for them by altering memories in Crystal Cove. As the world and technology moved on around them, the gang simply adapted without realizing what was going on. They remained high-school students, a group to themselves as their classmates moved on without them.

The gang so far had enough adventures to fill a museum with exhibits. The town had enough time to adapt everything to a haunted theme for tourists. Shaggy sometimes said they had been "teenagers forever." Fred was hazy about what "graduation" mean, and found the concept of time so confusing that he tried not to think about it.

All the parents, especially Daphne's, had gone a little crazy due to their extra-long parental roles and all the memory edits. Daphne's older sisters were originally her septuplet identical sisters. As they aged and Daphne didn't, they became her older sisters and got careers. One had married an astronaut and moved out of town – the others had practically forgotten about her.

With the additional fact that mysteries were created around them by the Entity (pulling innocent people into becoming monster-masked criminals), the five-element mystery groups were a bane to everyone around them, so Pericles believed. Some groups had imploded quickly and caused less harm. The one long-lasting group, the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery, had traveled the globe and diluted their dangerous influence by creating only a case or two in each place. But in the opinion of Pericles, this new, stable gang was the real curse of Crystal Cove. He would wipe them out once he gained power.

Then he would take over the world, of course.

* * *

**No Tell Motel**

Pericles examined the piece he had stolen from the home of Mayor Jones, in spite of the interference of the _kinder_. It had a circular glass window in it, and the left side had a square jigsaw pattern while the right had a triangular point notched out. He studied the mystic symbols on it.

There was something he had discovered about the pieces that nobody else knew. The pieces came in pairs marked with the same symbols: two triangles, two circles, and two "U" shapes. He also knew those pieces with the same symbol had an alchemical affinity. With the right process, one could be swapped for the other instantaneously over any distance.

He knew that the gang had the other piece with a circle. He was going to transpose it right out from under their noses. It wouldn't increase the number of pieces he held, but it would be a demonstration of power to the Entity, which had promised to alter everyone's memories so his trick would go undetected by anyone.

He arranged the alchemical elements around the piece on the motel-room desk: a lighter for fire, an ice cube for water, a clod of dirt for earth, and a full balloon for air. He drew mystic symbols in the dust between them and uttered an incantation. Then he placed one wing over the piece, covering from sight.

When he lifted his wing, the piece that he saw had two small triangular points on the left, and a square jigsaw pattern on the right. He had a moment of triumph, but then his mind clouded. It hadn't worked: this piece was the one he had stolen today from Jones.

The Entity chuckled in his sarcophagus. He had promised to alter _everyone's_ memories, after all.

* * *

**Fire Dimension**

Scooby-Doo fired the spear shaft of the broken Heart of the Jaguar into the crystal sarcophagus which the Entity was still tethered to. The Entity was sucked into the void, and everything around the gang was being sucked in with it.

Even though it seemed they were all prolonging the inevitable, they all held onto each other, until the black hole became a ball of light and exploded.

* * *

**Sitting Room**

Outside of time in the Sitting Room, the Anunnaki possessing Nova sensed the quantum wavefront collapsing as the Evil Entity was sucked into the void. Kukulcan the Feathered Serpent was with her.

"Come, Kukulcan, now is our opportunity to create a better world, with the Entity's influence removed but with all the best elements preserved."

They visited all the chambers of the Sitting Room in time order, freeing the best parts of those trapped there to join their new lives.

"Fernando El Aguirre, you and your men will return to Spain without ever hearing of a pearl-filled sarcophagus," Kukulcan said. "None of the evil you did as a result of the Entity ever happened."

"Thank you," said El Aguirre. "I never imagined such redemption was possible."

"Brothers of the Fraternitas Mysterium, you and Porto will lead quiet lives of contemplation and study," said Nova.

"The town will be founded at the site by your mission, not the conquistadors of 1630, and named for the crystal-clear waters there." said Kukulkan. "It will not perish in an earthquake or explosion."

"Thank you," said Friar Serra and Porto together. The other two monks nodded their agreement.

Nova and Kukulcan moved to the room with the frozen time slice of the Alianza Misterio. They woke the masked group.

"Consuela and Alphonso, Carmen and Gomez, you will be free and you will marry. Alphonso, you will succeed your father as Mayor and have the opportunity to undo much of his evil. El Fuchi, you will live with Gomez and Carmen as their pet – descented." said Kukulkan.

"Fuchi. Fuchi. Foo," said El Fuchi.

They moved to the room of the Mystery Gang.

"Dead Justice will not be tempted to steal and will retire an honorable man. Maria will run the family ranch, with Patience continuing as a ranch hand. Tiny will stay with them. Stella will become a rodeo star and she and Sissy will become business partners and eventually run a small dude ranch together when the wild west days are over," said Nova.

"Pardners," said Stella, and Sissy smiled.

They moved to the room of the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery.

"You will all still be friends and world travelers with Mr. Peaches as your companion. Mr. Burlington will still found a library, but filled with knowledge of the natural world and not the secrets of the Anunnaki," said Kukulcan.

"Mr. Puh-puh-puh-Peaches!" said Mr. Peaches, and Burlington clapped him on the back.

They went on to the time-slice of the Darrow mansion.

"You will be a happy family and Daniel will survive the others to be the Dean of Darrow University and the proprietor of the historic Darrow mansion," said Nova.

Pericles was in a room by himself, because his full corruption was in solitary confinement at the Asylum.

"You will be the pet and friend of Frau Gluck, who will reject the Nazis and emigrate to America. She will be an oceanographic researcher, creating robots that will eventually assist marine biologists Dr. Paul Williams and Capt. Michael Murphy, the parents of Tom and Tub. When her health fails she will find a new home for you with her young bird-loving neighbor, Ricky Owens," said Nova.

"Will I still be intelligent?" asked Pericles.

"You will be a highly intelligent talking bird, but the gift of the Krampus was too much for your own good, and it will be lessened," said Kukulcan.

The main room containing the old Mystery Incorporated was next. Ricky appeared the youngest in the room. They went to him first.

"You lost all your innocence in your youth, but you never got worse as the others did," said Nova. "You will be rewarded with great success, in a business that benefits humanity."

"Thank you," said Ricky.

Cassidy said, "I got worse after my hair was cut short, and that's why my good side looks like this?"

"Remember when the gang kept rejecting your offers of help? You turned against them, refusing to try any more direct warnings even though you had advance knowledge that Brad and Judy had evil intentions. You salved your conscience with cryptic warnings on a radio station the gang might not have even been listening to any more," said Nova.

"I'm sorry about that," said Cassidy. "I tried to make up for it by saving their lives on the undersea mission."

"That was well done," said Kukulcan. "Your reward is to be united with the man you love, and share his success. However, you will not be a part of the gang's life any more. You will be a famous person who never knew them personally. As will Ricky, for his many betrayals."

"Brad and Judy, you kept getting more and more corrupted, until even your love for each other was lost. That is why your good-side images were posed back to back. You will get pleasant lives, with fond memories of raising your son together, but not in the area of skill you most loved. You will become obstetricians, giving life freedom instead of trapping it," said Nova.

"Fred Jones, you were the true father to young Fred when his real family abandoned him. You will be first the principal of Crystal Cove High and then its soccer coach, with hundreds of kids to feel like a father to, and a special bond to Fred Chiles," said Kukulcan.

They entered a larger room where more people of Crystal Cove waited.

"Those of you who became monsters and villains under the influence of the Entity will be honest citizens who will find other ways to solve your problems," said Nova.

"Parents of the gang..." began Kukulkan, but interrupted himself. "Where is the gang? They should be here, too."

"Oh no!" said Nova. "They held themselves back as the quantum waveforms collapsed. Now they are stuck with the memories they had before. They will come back to a world where they don't belong."

Kukulcan said, "They are still the ageless alchemical team of five, then. They will never grow old as long as they remain together."

Nova said, "This is a sad fate for the saviors of the world. They will want mysteries to solve, but there is no Evil Entity to create them."

Kukulkan said, "Then the good Anunnaki must intervene to give them mysteries wherever they go. But they will be lighter ones, since evil is not in charge."

"If there are crimes, we will use career criminals who would have ended up in jail in any case. In other cases, we can use people with good motives who can be forgiven and left free," said Nova.

"There is another real evil to fight at Miskatonic University. Harlan Ellison can be made the new Mr. E to help them there," said Kulkukan.

The Rogers stepped forward, "May we still have happy memories of our child as a success?"

"I see no reason why not, though your son may not meet your expectations in the future," said Nova. "The rest of the parents may have that too, if they wish."

The others agreed, but then Hot Dog Water came forward.

"What about me? I sacrificed my life for the gang, and in this new world I'll be left alone. Even if Velma and I ever do get together again, I'll age and she won't," said Marcie.

"There is a way," said Nova. "You were once a substitute for Daphne, and your personality aspect is very like Velma's. You can join the gang at the University and help them with mystery-solving. You will share Daphne's fire and Velma's earth element to become ageless as well."

"As long as V and I can be together," said Marcie. "That's what matters to me."

**Crystal Cove**

Nova watched as the newly-painted Mystery Machine drove out of Crystal Cove, on the road to mysteries and adventure.

"Thank you, Scooby-Doo. You are the bravest dog that ever lived," said Nova.

"Scooby-Dooby-Doo!"

**The end**


End file.
